What's she thinking?

I wonder what was going on in that complicated 9 yr old mind of hers? Was she simply enjoying the sun on her shoulders? dreaming of fourth grade? imagining what it must be like to be a bird soaring high in the sky? or was it intense concentration on her next catch?

I will cherish these precious moments and of course i'm overwhelmed with gratitude that I have the means to capture fragments of her journey and share them with family and friends. Proudly displaying these pictures is like saying "look what I have, the very best gift in the world." A beautiful girl who loves life, loves to be fishing off a pier one day and prancing around in a pageant dress the next. A mix of girly fun and really intense love of all things nature. She'll enthusiastically share her knowledge on every living creature we happen upon, leaving me wondering where in the heck she stores all this information, where will her thirst for every tiny detail regarding our planet take her? The latest thoughts on her future are that she's going to be a marine biologist, or something along those lines. I truly, truly hope we can make those dreams come true for her. After all this is the land of opportunity, the one place on Earth that someone with a God given talent like hers should be able to be all she can be.

For now I'm just pausing, taking a moment to really let it sink in how utterly floored I am that I'm given this opportunity to take care of her for as long as I'm allowed. Savoring these years in which I can smother her with kisses, find her tickle spot and put her down in a gufawing heap, and try to answer all her questions. There are so many questions, the ones I don't know the answer to.... yep you guessed it... we Google it together. As long as she's aware I don't have all the answers but can help her find them, she'll still come to me with the questions.... and as long as she's doing that I'll still have the honor of being her guide.

I think this particular picture will remain one of my favorites for a long time, the sun in her curls and the expression.... just what is she thinking???