Long ago, sometime around 1st grade, Petunia dubbed Thursdays "Lucky Thursdays." To her, it seemed like Thursdays were always great: almost the end of the week, special playdate days, always great days at school, etc. And since Thursdays made her so happy, the Guv and I did what we could to play it up; we'd be more likely to go out to eat on Thursdays, or maybe we'd have a special dessert or movie night. With our move to Silicon Valley, it just so happened that Thursday is "bagel day" at school -- an experience where kids can use tickets to buy half-bagels with cream cheese at recess. It's also her bluegrass guitar lesson day, something she really loves. "Lucky Thursday" is here to stay.
Cementing "Lucky Thursday" in stone was the life-changing event of Petunia's ear-piercing last Thursday. She really, really wanted to have her ears pierced, and we told her she had to wait until age 10. About a year ago, she approached us to ask if there's any way she could get them done earlier. Her request was reasonable to consider; she is a super-easy, totally awesome kid, after all! We decided to give her a shot at bumping up the timeline by half a year through completing a reading challenge. She rose to the challenge, and ta-da! There are now little gold balls in little precious earlobes, placed there by her pediatrician, who pierces ears because of the high rates of infections she sees from mall stores. Win-win!
What we didn't realize was just how much this experience would mean to our ever-sweet, super-good kid Petunia. Her ear-to-ear smile, bright-pink cheeks and tear-filled, brimming-with-joy eyes reflected such intense happiness that I couldn't help but choke up myself. The last time I saw her that happy, she was holding her newborn brother for the first time. It doesn't take much to make Petunia happy, but this depth of happiness doesn't overtake her very often.
She doesn't know that today, another "Lucky Thursday," I'm going to take her out for a special dinner at our favorite restaurant to celebrate one week of having pierced ears. Unknown to her, though, I'm also celebrating having a 9.5 year-old kid who doesn't just demand attention but also gives it. She still hugs and kisses me and holds my hand in public, makes me laugh when I need it -- she is exactly like the Guv charisma-wise! -- and teaches me lessons of resilience, character, and empathy every single day. Oftentimes, I feel like she's teaching me more than I'm teaching her; and, as much as I'm holding on to my little girl, she's holding me together. She's living proof of all that is good and right in the world, and I'm overwhelmed by feeling lucky to know her at all, let alone to be her mom. So today, Lucky Thursday is a little extra-special: a tribute to the kid who first made me a mom, and a wish to all of you that your Thursdays will be lucky, too.
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