MISSING

LOST: A good amount of sanity

LAST SEEN: Date unknown, has been spotted here and there approximately sometime in the past few years or so

SUSPECTED REASON FOR LOSS: Could be directly related to, but not limited by: spilled milk at every meal, mud tracked over a mopped floor, rainy winter-like days in June, whiney kids who desperately need but refuse to take a nap, fingers slammed in bedroom doors and toddlers emptying out garbage cans. Might have also been lost due to: sticky popsicles melting on the kitchen table, tripping over toys spread from one end of the house to the other, and kids calling each other names like, "babysockyblueah!" and then listening to the victim whine about being called something so cruel.

DESCRIPTION OF LOSS: Also known as: a quiet moment, a cup of coffee disguised as relaxation, a pair of earphones carrying peaceful tunes into my head. Looks like a blue sky with blushing white clouds or a sunset bleeding over a still lake. Often seen in field of wildflowers or a white sand beach in the middle of a summer afternoon. Known to be found in a good book, the company of a caring friend, the words of an understanding mother, and a bear hug from a little child.

IF SPOTTED: Take a moment and don't let it pass by without connecting to it. Soak it in, close your eyes, and just be there. Because chances are, by the time you open your eyes you'll see it slipping away again in the form of your child in the backyard uprooting all the flowers you just planted.