Seizing Small Moments

"My brother ties my shoes and I just keep putting them on because I don't know how to time my shoes."

• Paul Gearo
  

Seizing Small Moments

I was in my home office working against a deadline. My nose was up against a window, so to speak, so I had my head down and worked as fast as I could. The house was empty and quiet. The working conditions were perfect! Yet, I had no idea how perfect they were about to become.

The door bell rang without warning. I wasn't expecting anyone so I was slow to react; intent on keeping my head in my work. It rang again. I could almost feel the anxiety of the person ringing the bell. It rang again; and, again.

Hesitantly I stood up and began to walk to the door. The bell rang two more times before I could open the door. I'm sure I opened it just before the bell was to ring again.

When I swung the door open, the threshold was partially filled by a young boy, about ten or twelve years of age. I knew him. He lived next door. His name is Paul. Sometimes I take care of his hamster when he goes on vacation. Paul calls him "Hammy." When he lives with me his name is "Simon." But, Paul isn't visiting to ask me to watch his hamster this time.

"Mr. Butterfield! Pillsbury (my cow) is out. Can I help you catch him?"

The "Pillsbury Dough Bull" has decided to seek the greener pasture of my back yard. I didn't notice because I was so intent on my work. Luckily Paul watches everything around my house. He's a great neighbor. We walk out back together.

Since I know Pillsbury is all about eating, that's how he got his Dough Boy Figure, we coax him back into the pasture with some of his favorite hay. Then Paul and I walk around the fence so we can determine what needs to be repaired.

As we track the fence line we come across a good sized stretch of mud. It sucks and pulls at our shoes in an effort to extract them from our feet. Paul just about loses his!

"Paul, let's stop so you can tie your shoes," I say.

"I don't know how to tie them" he replies. "My brother ties them and I just keep putting them off and on."

Paul is a very smart kid! I puzzle at his response. But, my experience with one of my own children has taught me that sometimes a person can be a "genius" and still have some type of uncompleted wiring in the brain that's just not quite developed yet.

We find a break in the electric fence. "Do you know how to tie a bowline knot?" I ask.

Paul says, "No. I don't know how to tie knots. They're too complicated for me. It's like my shoes, people show me how to tie them but, I can't remember how!"

We stand there and I show him how to tie a bowline knot. "The rabbit comes out of the hole, goes around the tree and back down the hole," I say. "Now the two ropes will stay strong and connected."

Paul and I walk back toward my house. "Let's sit on the steps and I'll teach you an easy way to tie your shoes," I say.

We get to the steps and sit down together. "Make one bunny ear. Then make another . . .," I explain.

After a few tries Paul gets it! He does it two more times before his father drives into their driveway. When Paul sees him he about jumps right out of his shoes as he shouts, "My dad's home!" I watch him run across my lawn and hear him holler to his dad that he can now tie his own shoes. He's thrilled and I'm grateful for a good neighbor that watches over me!

"Now that I've done something important today, I can go back to my work." I think to myself. And, I marvel that sometimes it's the smallest of things that bring the most satisfaction and build the strongest of relationships. So, I make a commitment to myself to seize these perfect conditions whenever they appear in front of me so I won't miss the best moments life offers me and you.