A Bedtime Story

Once upon a time there was a little girl named Kate, who was as skinny and petite as they come. She had wispy blonde hair and greenish blue eyes which almost appear to be made of broken glass when you’d look at them closely. Anyone who encountered Kate, would be greeted with a smile and a “Hi”…for in her friendly nature she’s always drawn to people.

Anyway, on this particular day, during naptime, Kate’s Mom decided that it was high time that she took Kate’s guard rail off of her bed. For Kate seemed cautious enough now to know the boundaries of her bed. Kate never before had gotten down from her bed herself, even though there was a good size gap at the foot of her bed to allow her to exit. But almost immediately after seeing the freedom that this removed guard rail gave her, she quickly climbed down off that bed and came out of her room with a smile, to show that she was definitely pleased with her accomplishment! This happened repeatedly during naptime, as her Mother kept plopping her back into her bed. After a while, her Mom wasted so much time putting Kate back into her bed, that she allowed Kate to stay up and figured she’d just put Kate to bed early that evening. This same incident happened a few days in a row…no matter how many times Kate was disciplined!

About 3 evenings after the removed guard rail, Kate’s Mom went in to each of the children’s bedrooms to make sure they were covered for the evening (a routine she does every night before she herself climbs into bed). On this particular night, upon entering Kate’s bedroom she noticed that Kate’s bed was empty. Being that she had already been in the master bedroom, and had just come from checking on Kate’s sister, Moriah, in the other bedroom…and also knowing that she hadn’t seen Kate wandering down the hall while she was in the living room, she decided to peek up into Levi’s bed, which was right above Kate’s own. Upon peeking up there, her Mother couldn’t help but smile. For the sight of her two eldest children snuggled there deep in sleep was enough to melt her heart.

…This hasn’t occurred again, but it sure was sweet.