The richest of treasures.

Cosette woke up at 4:00 this morning, wet and hungry. But not tired. After she was changed and fed, all she wanted to do was lie next to me in the dark, looking at me with her big eyes, chattering softly- so as not to wake anyone else up and ruin the moment- with a beautiful, wonderful, everything-is-right-in-the-world smile. As tired as I was at the moment, as much as I really wanted to go sleep, a small part of me just wanted that moment to last forever. There is so much tragedy and chaos in the world, but moments like these remind me of what is good and right.

Sometimes, in the middle of the day when I am frustrated or tired, I pause and think of the little moments that I treasure. I think how, when we take our Saturday afternoon nap Cosette curls her little body into mine, fitting perfectly, like she is part of me again. Or how lately, when I walk into Juliette's room in the morning, she looks at me with such a big smile on her face; or when I pick her up at the end of the day she is so excited to see me that she has to run around the room a few times otherwise she's likely to burst with happiness. Or how when I'm talking to Cosette, she stares up at me and reaches her hand to touch my face, with such a look of wonder on hers. These moments remind me that it isn't the material things that give life meaning. I could lose everything, but as long as I had my family around me, I'd be one of the richest people in the world.