W's 7th

We are celebrating the start of William's 7th year this week.

 

Here he is at the beginning of his 6th year, on his first day of kindergarten. It was hard for me to drop him off that day, I had so many concerns about how he was going to manage school, but it turns out he's quite the natural when it comes to learning and relating in the classroom.



This is the day last winter when his front teeth got knocked out on the playground at school. He was laying on the floor, hurting, and Henri was checking on him. I love the look on William's face, seems to show much of who he is.

 

Nature is one of William's loves, here he is on one of our many hikes this spring, he seems to be happiest when he is free to roam. Evidently this picture was taken during his hiatus from hair cuts.

 

One of the things I love about William is that he is not afraid to take up new things, then set them down when he has learned enough to satisfy his initial curiosity. It's fun to indulge his ideas, as we did with his desire to learn more about birdwatching, one of the many hobbies he took up this year.

 

William has filled out this year both physically and mentally. He's gained some new friends and lost some of the same. He's tender, especially toward animals and nature, he cried this week when he saw a fish being cleaned. This past year he's had 5 stitches, lost several teeth, and been to the doctor 5 times with strep throat. He reads anything he sees, mulls it over, questions it and moves on if our answers satisfy. He is as brilliant as he is absent-minded. He doesn't hesitate to share affection and joy, but tends to hide his sadness and disappointment. He intersperses his usual happy-go-lucky demeanor with periods of melancholy and thoughtfulness. When he shares what is going on inside his head and heart, we consider it a rare gift. All of the words in this post barely describe a fraction of who he is.

 

All of us in this house are in love with him, and find celebrating him incredibly easy and fun.