I saw something really precious today. I was people watching and waiting for my hubby to pick me up from work. A father and daughter were having dinner alone. The whole time, the father was so attentive. He helped her take her jacket off, he carefully piled five or six napkins in a row so that she could lay her food on top of them, he talked with her the whole time, actual conversation. He called her pretty, and explained things to her in a manner that was not condescending, but informative. When he saw that she had finished her nuggets, he asked if she was still hungry, then got her more. She objected to him having to pay more for her meal (totally cute) When they got up to leave, he helped her with her jacket. And said the sweetest thing, "After all, this is the last day you'll be six."
I can only take that to mean that it was her birthday tomorrow, and I thought it was sweet of him to show how little things matter. I don't often see such detail in parenting. Especially from a man towards his daughter. It reminded me a little bit of when I was a little girl and my dad used to lift me over puddles.
It was especially nice because this happened after a particularly hairy day at work.
Then, I had an epiphany. Just a thought that really stood out to me. Most of my epiphanies are realizations about how things are. This epiphany was special, and while I hope I have a lot more of them, I am not sure how many epiphanies are actually 'proactive'.
love you all
x