First Lesson in Physics

It is always allergy season in Austin, Texas. If you are here more than 5 years you will find something to sniffle at…it is that bad. So it is appropriate that Ella at 5 ½ years old is developing allergies.  This process is similar to a rite of passage in many cultures. Some tribes tattoo, some pierce skin or bind feet but in Austin we give Claritin to our kids. It is a small price to pay to live in beautiful Austin.
Saturday morning at 4AM Ella wakes me up to tell me her nose is stopped up and she “cannot get air in there”. I gave her some decongestant and slathered her with Vicks vapor Rub. Had it not been 4AM, I may have teared up while doing this. I cannot count how many times my mom lathered me up with that stuff. The next morning I always woke up smelling somewhat like bacon. It was gross but it worked.

I applied it under E’s nose and tucked her back into bed. She drifted back to sleep. The next morning she woke up and said, “Mommy, your stuff didn’t work.” She explained that one side of her nose was still “not working”. I asked what side she slept on and she smiled and said “THIS one!!” Then it clicked that the “stuff” moved over to the side she slept on and basically she thought that was REALLY cool.

I cannot and did not take credit for God’s design. It was a true delight to see E connect the dots and have the light bulb above her head go off. I love those moments. For me, the trade off for not having a baby to hold anymore is the moments like that one where something intangible is understood. The look in E’s eyes was priceless then the moment was gone and she said, “well, that stuff smells funny.” It was back to reality.