I was taking a walk the other day along the trail behind my apartment and came across this little girl. She had two friends with her. A boy and a girl — both much smaller than she. They were reaching and jumping, trying to grab the toy out of her outstretched hand. There were shrieks and laughter as bubbles flew all around. The sun caught them in its light, and, in the brief moment of their existence, they turned all the colors of the rainbow!
I stood there for a few minutes, watching them from a distance.
Suddenly, I was transported back in time. I was that little girl — blowing bubbles and laughing. Carefree and happy.
Sure, we did not have bubble machines in those days. We put a wand in the jar of gloop, gently pulled it out, and blew it into the air. Sometimes, if we were really careful, we could make different shapes and sizes. Oh! They were beautiful!
I finally turned and reluctantly walked away.
But the memories of blowing bubbles made me happy! And it was comforting to know that despite all the ugliness in the world and the worrisome side effects of modern technology, some sweet things never change.
Carole Leskin
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Carole Leskin is a retired Director of Global Human Resources. Embarking on a second career as a writer and photographer concentrating on her personal accounts of aging, her essays and poetry, frequently accompanied by her photos, are published in Jewish Sacred Aging, Jewish Women of Words, Starts At 60, Navigating Aging ( a Kaiser Health publication), Women’s Older Wisdom, Time Goes By and Next Avenue. Her poems, “Father Time” and “Carole’s Debate” were selected for inclusion in the 2019 anthologies of poetry, New Jersey Bards. Her photos have been featured in Mart R Porter Nature Forum.
Thanx for reminding us of the beautiful simple pleasures in life!