When Calvin shares his heart with another woman it will be a bridge that his mother and grandmothers will have to cross. But at age eleven there doesn't seem to be much danger in that happening soon, though I have heard whispers of a flower that is tempting at the moment. No, Calvin's heart is presently taken with a beauty that could possibly overwhelm all other lovely partakers in his life. Even his beautiful women will have his other love to contend with. Calvin loves to read. His love of books is insatiable. He can settle into a comfy chair and disappear for hours if allowed. He goes everywhere, he sees the world in history, in present, and in future. He visits kingdoms and faraway homes, and he is enamoured with their stories.
Assigned book reports at school are music to his ears, and they are dispatched swiftly and with revel. While I visited for four days last week he finished reading The Diary of Anne Frank and prepared his written report in no time. One of the best parts for me is having Calvin give me an oral report on what he reads. His enthusiasm for what he is reading is just simply delightful. He becomes so familiar with the characters that he oozes with excitement.
His mother, Jill, took a day from work while I was there, and we went on a jaunt to the shopping mall. All children were required to attend, much to the dismay of the young men involved. We were ready to leave, and Jill checked out her children. "What is that?" she asked Calvin with resignation. "A book," he replied. Yes, it was a book, but we were going shopping. And his mother understands that Calvin just doesn't go anywhere without a book in one hand. (At this writing Calvin carries a book in one hand and an orange, transparent yo-yo in the other. As he walks he reads and he practices the yo-yo.) We left the house without further discussion; if he had to go, he was taking a book. While we were at the mall I left a store at one point to find a cooler place on the court to sit. I found Calvin waiting patiently on a bench, in another world, reading.
In the car traveling to the mall and back he read. He reads on the sofa, and he reads laying on his bed. I found an activity that lured him away from his book for a solid afternoon on the back deck. Wesley, Calvin, Lelia and I played five-card draw poker. He won and lost and stayed with us. But the next day he sat with us while we played again, this time with a book in one hand. Calvin played a couple of hands, then would sit out a couple to read. The contortions that his body goes through are amazing, but he sits for so long at one time that he must move to keep the blood flowing.
Calvin visits amazing places, and he is a delight to visit with because he is so well-read and knowledgeable. We will never complain about his reading habits. Actually, I really can't believe that there is one book in the library that family frequents that he hasn't read. If there is, he will find it soon. Meanwhile, he is busy re-reading for the seventh time some of his favorites.
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