because the world is so fast and so small

When I was pregnant with Rosemary, I came upon this beautiful poem, which is now framed and sitting at my desk:

because the world is so fast and so small
by kathleen paul-flanagan

i teach them lemonade comes from lemons
rolled on the kitchen counter
to bring up the juice,
not from yellow powder
in a tiny barrel
sold on supermarket shelves

and about glittery, gold valentines
on paper doilies
handmade and hand-delivered
and how to string popcorn
for the christmas tree

because the world is so fast and so small
i pass on my love
of windy music in leaves,
the dribbling poetry in rain
and the beauty of total silence.

i pray they can turn in circles,
admiring the small miracles
of each day

***

And so, with this poem in mind, I determined that Rosemary and I would make, and enjoy making, the valentine's that she would hand out at her preschool Valentine's Day party.

Rosemary was completely on board, having just learned how to cut out heart shapes, by laying on the floor. You see, with her elbows firmly planted on the carpet, she is much more capable of following a line with her scissors.

She had so much fun cutting out those hearts, that we took a little detour and she decided to decorate her bedroom door.

She wanted, specifically to put the pink heart near the fire detector, so it wouldn't be lonely.

Eventually we got to the business of making valentines for her classmates. I got the idea of flowers with dum-dums in the center from good 'ol Martha Stewart.

I had to do all the cutting and the gluing for these. But I didn't mind.

Rosemary was able to practice writing her name and the names of her classmates. We had a lot of fun and I was happy I made this decision as opposed to some sort of store bought what-have-you.

Because the world is so fast and so small.