a story-portrait of a moment in time.
Thursday November 16th @ 6:50am

alex is in the dining room eating breakfast.
bella is in the foyer putting on her socks.
marty is in the living room packing her bag for the day.
anthony is upstairs just waking up.
troy is in the kitchen making anthony's lunch.

there's a knock at the door. in that i am the least busy of the other people on the main floor who are scrambling to leave for the day i answer it to let in a neighbor girl who rides to school with marty and bella. after the girl steps into the foyer and greetings are made i pause after looking at bella who is wearing an overly scanty shirt.

TROY
you can't wear that shirt to school.

BELLA
what. why not? it's fine.

TROY
oh my gosh. fine for whom?

as bella and i debate the shirt marty, moments from leaving for the day, appears before me. she rests her hands on my chest, gazes at me knowingly and then nestles her head into my neck as she slides her hands to my back, one hand drifting down to my butt. i'm savvy enough to know this is her probably trying to distract me from my daughter's wardrobe which marty sees no fault in. even with this knowledge in hand, i'm still weakened by my wife's embrace.

BELLA
well, if i can't wear this shirt, you can't wear those pants.

TROY (breaking from my stupor)
my pants! these are sweatpants bella and a far cry from your shirt.

BELLA
but they're too tight and mom can't not touch your butt when you wear them.

MARTY
i have no defense.

alex sock-slides into the foyer without warning.

ALEX
my sixth sense kicked in. i knew there was hugging and kissing going on and i must stop it.

alex animatedly inserts himself between marty and i. as the three of us giggle at his antics, racing steps can be heard above heading for the stairs. in two bounds anthony rounds the corner in nothing but his underwear. he shoots his arm in the air and yells. "i found my glasses!" he holds the upraised arm forward showing a pair of dust-covered spectacles. these glasses were lost and thought forever gone six months ago so their return surprised everyone.

MARTY
oh my! where were they?

ANTHONY
behind the bed in the nest. i dropped something and reached down to get it, thought this was that and it was my glasses.

MARTY
what a great way to start a day. congratulations on your find.

i will second marty's sentiment--what a great way to start a day. and i have gotten to experience this sentiment for many days and many years now. i don't know what forces have allowed me to win this familial jackpot but most days i feel un-deserving of this wondrous boon that is my family and daily existence.