Sweetie Grandma

He is making a mud puddle. Jumps in, squeals, delighted. Hey! There is grass on my legs! Sure is, I agree. I’m DIRTY! Said in an accusatory way. Yes, you are, I say. He jumps in two more times, sloshing mud up his legs. Looks at me. I smile. His face turns serious. He begins washing his legs with the slow cold water, coming from the hose. It is cold! He announces, almost as if he is surprised. Can you help me? I help him drag in enough hose to get to the top of the slide. He makes it into a water fall, and slides down fast, landing on his bottom with a thump. The hose falls off, so I go over and show him how to keep it up there, using holes in the plastic. He splashes himself in the eye right before his next slide. Hey! I got water in my eye! Hey, guys, I got water in my EYE! I look up. He is over it, sliding again. Landing on his tummy this time. After about forty minutes of this, he releases the hose, and jumps onto the swing set which is about fifteen feet away from this slide. Push me, Grandma! I push him. “HIGHER! High as the sky!” I do as I am told. “I am an astronaut, I am going into outer space!” he screams. His mother arrives, and says “That’s pretty high.” “I know,” I say. “But he’s at grandma’s house.” He is invincible here. The eagle arrives. I point it out. He names it Sweetie Grandma. Sunday heaven.