sagewatch

My little girl Sage is growing up really fast.

We have conversations that put all my knowledge of syntax, context and intuition to the test ("Janga, janga!").

She knows how to get down from the bed and the couch and how to sit on a thin pole (one of our dressers has a low one), carefully balancing herself and heeding my advice not to lean backwards.

She knows that there are certain magazines she can rip apart with abandon but that she has to be gentle with comics and books (she's unnaturally strong since she was able to dismember one of her really really thick cardboard storybooks - so being gentle is a challenge).

Today, when we went to the jacuzzi, I set her down in the water, up to her chin. She considered her situation, tried to drink the water, realized it was no good, and proceeded to enjoy herself anyway - she's not afriad of the water. Or of the dark for that matter - because no one has taught her to fear these things (it's funny how a totally dark room will not prevent her explorations).

She loves to eat sour things. Give her a piece of green mango and her face will contort into a grimace before she takes a bite. But she'll eat it all, giggling through the process.

She's drinking from a cup but has yet to realize that if she dumps everything out, then there's nothing more to drink. Sage also loves icecubes. We give her one as almost as large as her fist and she'll suckle it happily, setting it down when it gets too cold to hold, and then picking it up when she knows she can handle it.

The most difficult thing is asking her not to move when I want to take still shots. As soon as my favorite model sees me with the camera, she barrels towards me with glee. I end up with pictures of the wall or part of her head.

How can this wonderful person be my daughter?