Ciao Little Bird

After a very long ordeal, my bird got to her new nest away from home - Italy! She proved herself a strong and able traveler. When one route was closed, she flew another one. She did it all by herself, just like she's been begging to do since she was 2. I can hear her little high pitched, stuttering voice in my head, "M-m-m-mommy, me do!" She's always been determined to do things on her own, in her own way. When she was 5 she didn't like to be watched when she painted. So one morning she got up really early and painted a picture. I got up to find she had dragged a chair to the sink so she could wash the brushes. The first thing I noticed was how precariously she was standing on the chair over the sink, then I noticed the spilled paint, then I noticed she hadn't put on her smock so her clothes were covered in washable (not) paint, then I noticed the paint in her hair. And just before I could speak, I noticed the picture she painted, a girl and her mother picking flowers. Finally, I noticed, above all, was that my little bird was grinning from ear to ear, proud of her accomplishment, awaiting my applause. "Good job, honey," I said, in my best motherese, smiling, resisting the urge to clean up for her, "I'm going back to bed. Wake me up when you're all done." And so, 16 years later when she got delayed and stuck at the airport and she re-routed her flight, I said to her, "Good job, honey. I'm going back to bed. Call me when you're all done." To myself, I said, "Ciao little bird."