Well, you know how I’ve been feeling lately. I’m not sure I’m fit to be around anybody. I’d hate to infect people with my grumpy mood and my sour attitude. But I actually thought a close encounter with the munchkins might be of some benefit to me (if not to them). Tammy apparently thought so, too. Either that’s why she invited me, or that’s why she insisted that I go.

To be honest, Aiden wasn’t in a much better frame of mind than I was tonight. He was tired and grouchy from the cold he’s been fighting. He’s actually getting better, but he wasn’t his usual sparkly, happy self tonight. I got to spend a little time with him, and with D.J. and Dakota, and I think that helped lift my spirits.

But I have to tell you, it was Kylie who made my night. She let me talk to her for a half hour or so, and she just glowed with the kind of inner light that it’s hard to see unless you’re looking into her eyes.

After all, she’s only two months and four days old. That’s not a lot of time to learn how to interact with other people, especially someone who’s pretty much a stranger. She sees her parents and her brothers and her grandma every day, but I only get to see her once a week. She was talking to me and trying very hard to make herself understood. I can’t say I know exactly what she was saying, but I could tell without a doubt that she knew.

Whatever happens to me during the current crisis, I want to be around for a long time to watch these children grow up. I caught a fleeting glimpse of Kylie in a few years, with a sly smile and a cocked eyebrow, wrapping adults like me around her delicate little finger. And when the words come, I want to know what she has to say.