Today I do declare I am the proudest Papa of a 5 year old in all of Dadlandia.
How did I get here? It all started yesterday evening shortly after returning home from work.
Before this it had been a miserably cold and dark and crappy day. Before this barely a mouse had scratched it's ass all day at work. Before this I was once again a half zombie walking through a wholly familiar threshold with a familiar greeting:
"Hi honeys... I'm home!"
Already things were looking up. M and Q were fervently crafting intricate flowers out of an impressive and chaotic assortment of colored and printed paper. Shapes and designs swirled and coalesced across the table top like waves on a pool of shifting mosaic tile.
I sit down to take it in. Happy, so very happy to be out of the cold and dark and free from the wheel and the drip and the cage where we spend our days counting things even smaller than we are.
M gets up to leave and Q and I are left with pen and paper and scissor and tape. It's an odd but comforting feeling... to feel so adequately prepared for any problem with only a few basic tools and materials. This is all you need.
After a few moments of orienting myself to the infinite possibility in front of me the 5 year old cuts in:
"Dad, my friend today said something that wasn't true."
"Oh" I said. "What was that?"
"She said only a man and woman could get married. But I told her that wasn't true. I told her she was wrong. I was right, wasn't I?"
"Yes, absolutely. You are right."
And that was it. No long drawn out explanation or recounting. No need to explain the regional aspects of the issue. No need for any grey in this sea of color. 5 year olds tend to overstate. She continues:
"If a woman wants to marry a woman, or a man wants to marry a man, or a man wants to marry a woman, or a Mom wants to marry a Dad or a Mom wants to marry a Mom or a Dad wants to marry a Dad that's ok too, right?"
"Yep"
"I was right, I knew it."
So that's it. Nothing more to see here except flowers and leaves and stems. Time to move along. Love wins. Easy peasy.
And I shall be a proud and happy man for this day and many more.
XOXO
Matthew Clarke