There is this one kid, Elijah, who just turned 5 and is still too young to come to the Club, but his twin 7 year-old brother and sister come over daily, as well as his 10 year-old brother. Many evenings, Elijah comes running into the Club with his mother to pick up his siblings. He bounces up to me, gives me a big hug, looks up with a smile, and asks, "Can I have some candy?!" Now Elijah has a bit of a speech impediment, so it was at first difficult to understand what he was asking me. But now I know, and sure enough, everytime I see him, that is what he asks me. So today, after Elijah had crammed a grocery bag with plastic candy-filled eggs that he found, we were sitting in the grass counting them in amazement at how much candy he had received. He looked at all of his eggs, then looked up at me, and with that cute smile, said, "Miss Stephanie, now YOU can ask ME for candy next time you see me!"

I love hanging out with kids when they are in their element... when they are free to be kids... to be joyous and pensive and curious and uninhibited...

Why does life seem to take that from us as we get older?