Treasure

I love the way Youngest holds onto those flowers.

The way her little fist tightly wraps around them, taking care not to drop any.

She is my nature girl.

Whenever we are outside, she has her nose to the ground,

searching out little bits of nature's treasures.

Fallen acorns or hickory nuts;

lost feathers or crinkly leaves;

flowers or pretty rocks.

She has her own drawer in our art cart and like a squirrel

she stashes away all her finds.

I've peeked in it and she has put in there

all her favorite little people characters

a vintage hot wheels car pilfered from Daddy's stash,

pictures her sisters drew;

and if I didn't know better, I would have cleaned it up

and thrown all her treasure bits away.

If only she could know,

she is my treasure.