Part of this past week was devoted to the delights of grandparenting so this is a shorter post. I continue to be amazed and impressed at what a not-yet-3 year old comprehends, expresses and imagines. There is a steady stream of conversation, lots of singing (all the verses of “London Bridge Is Falling Down”—even ones I didn’t know plus a verse in Japanese—and her own made-up songs), and many play scenarios from having a birthday party to going to the beach. We actually went to the beach for real and she was thoroughly engrossed in building a sand castle and stepping just enough into the water for the waves to tickle.
At Grandma and Grandpa’s house, she was always ready to “help” so I had her assistance in measuring rice, stirring soup, and then setting the table. In the kitchen, she would position the fold-up stool (a great invention, by the way) just so at the counter and pop up to help. We also read books and a new one about a bear and a duck called Good Night Already! was requested over and over as in “Again, again.”
The four days passed all too quickly. I’ve stored up memories, hugs, and the sound of her voice until the next visit.
This Week’s Book
Arctic Summer by Damon Galgut 
I was attracted to this novel for its promised portrayal of E.M. Forster. I enjoy historical novels about artists and writers and thought Colm Toibin’s The Master about Henry James was itself masterful. But, despite its nomination for the Man Booker Prize, I’m finding this book slow going, especially the opening chapters. Forster’s travels to India and back, around England, and then to Egypt are sometimes hard to separate making for a muddled story line, but do show him gathering impressions and insights for his later novels, particularly Passage to India. The book gets better farther on and is primarily a novel about the hurt and anguish of unrequited love as Forster, in his early thirties, comes to terms with his homosexuality.
I am persevering and having passed the midpoint will complete the book.
