My younger sister, Savannah, is four years old. She is loud, outspoken, and very happy. There is sixteen and a half years between the two of us, but the blood we share bridges that gap.
Savannah, or (as we call her) Boopie, came to visit Boston once this year and got to ride on the subway. She was so excited and would not stop talking about it. The pure and unadulterated excitement shines off her cute little cheeks clearer than I’ve ever seen on any child’s face.
I occasionally videochat with my mom and siblings. I got to see Boopie tonight via webcam.
Tonight, I asked her: “When are you going to come visit me?”
She replied: “Umm…Monday!”
My mother interjected and asked if I would really like to take her for a weekend. They live about 3 hours and a boat ride away, so it would have to be well planned out. Mom and her husband, Boopie’s father, want to take a trip to Florida to see my grandmother. Why not leave Boopie at Sissy’s?!
So, with this news Boopie started jumping around and yelling, “yay! yay! yay!”
I told her: “Boopie…when you get here, we can go on the train!”
She immediately ran to her father and exclaimed: “DAD! When I go stay with Sissy, I get to go on the train!”
She ran back to the computer and looked right into the camera. This moment, when she smiled and tried to really look at me through the screen, was beautiful. Her shining, unadulterated excitement is beautiful. I hope she never loses that – and if she does, I hope that she finds it and holds on tight.
