When the heavy heat visits us every summer, I light out for the beach to visit with family. Since the age of ten, I look forward to the start of every trip while each trip’s ending brings regret. This year my sister and brother-in-law dared to bring their two little sons to experience Uncle Chad. While I shall spare the details of teaching bad habits, the tale of indulging the curiosity of a two-year-old is in order.
Little Hudson is at that age where everything is a new discovery. Building things out of the ground we walked on was a novelty to him. We had some technicolor plastic molds that allowed us to create various sea creatures in the sand, all of which Hudson promptly destroyed like a mighty Godzilla rampaging Tokyo.
Hudson does have an affinity for Disney characters (he IS my nephew after all), so I set out to blow his mind. We started out piling up some sand together, and fetching water as needed. Two-year-olds being what they are, he soon lost interest in these technical aspects of beach building, and wandered off somewhere. I don’t know where. I was busy carving him a mouse.
When Hudson regained interest in what Uncle Chad was doing, he took one look at it and said, “Wreck it now?” His momma said no, and we posed for a picture. You can see his enthusiasm has no boundaries.
A few days later my sister’s family departed for their home, but Mickey remained intact. Hudson never did wreck it, but neither did anyone else. A week after his rise from the shadows of the sand, Mickey lived on. Sure, he was a little weathered as any 85-year-old mouse would be, and had become home to several sand crabs who must have been Disney fans. I like to think that after I made my way back to California, Mickey continued keeping his watch over our little spot on the beach waiting to enthrall the next two-year-old to come along….
….who promptly wrecked it.