Sweet Abundance: Food for the Stomach and Soul
By Kay Habana
Yesterday was a milestone in my son’s life, in his childhood. Despite the threat of cold and rain from the time we got to Flushing Meadows Park, we both had an extraordinary time.
Earlier on in the day, since Kael had no school, we had planned to just spend the morning in the mall to shop for new toys. Yes, my little one’s birthday month is far from over hence, the requests for gifts are very much in sight. The shopping didn’t happen.
Instead, we opted to go to the park to play and learn how to bike. Kael exclaimed, “I think I’m ready to learn how to bike! Plus, I really need to lose weight, mom.” I laughed, but agreed to the idea. It was high time.
At the park, we first played ball games: some light throwing and catching, and heavy baseball, just because we really excel at the latter. LOL! I’m just teasin’!
As time progressed, when more bikes from the rental became available, we tried out different ones. The first two had many wheels, so they were easier to maneuver. Kael got too excited driving the “quad” that we actually crashed into a pole.
No injuries, just lots of laughs after I reprimanded him for not paying attention. Then came, the “bicycle”. Oh my! I was freaking out in my head. I didn’t know how to go about teaching him let alone the fact that my son is about 35 lbs. heavier than me. Another LOL!
The initial tries were quite challenging, and given how cold it was, the experience was definitely sweat-inducing. There were moments we thought of giving up, but thankfully, we didn’t. A shy of an hour later, he was able to do it on his own.
What a fulfilling moment that was! Seeing him “fly” was a joy to behold. The bonus– we rewarded ourselves with late-lunch in the forms of Adobo and Bulalo that I had brought with me from home. Ultimately, the day turned out to be rich and beautiful, because we had the blessing of rain to cap our adventure.
It’s never too late to teach our children new things or introduce them to new experiences. It might seem scary at first, but the result is priceless.
I hope that we, as parents, will always take precious time not just to listen to our children’s stories, but to be part of their story, as well. Nourish that parent-child relationship, one experience at a time.
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