insight

EYESIGHT

By Leah Bluntschli
bluntsch@mscd.edu

Dizzy

My little sister's boyfriend, Troy Cobb, twirled my 4-year-old niece around and around in the air, holding her in his arms, stopping when they were both dizzy and starting again and again at her shrill, ecstatic, and seemingly never-ending request for "More spinning!"

I watched him twirl her in the light of the late day sun. Her face turned up to the sky. His strong arms holding her safe against his chest. Her fine baby hair flying out behind her. His laugh of fake exasperation. It was the picture of absolute happiness, fleeting and rare and shockingly beautiful.

Her life is a dark mirror image. Her life as she once knew it is crumbling away as her parents are getting a divorce after years of misery and trying to work things out. And the worst thing is to not be able to do anything about it, to not be able to help things go back to the way they were before everything went bad, and to not be able to comfort her as her baby-girl mind tries to deal with this life-changing event.

All I can do is try to give her more moments like this.