Late last week, when I was walking home from the hatchery, I came across a family.
Dad was leaning against a fence, Mom was juggling a toddler, and a little boy was racing around between them. Mom said something to Dad, Dad said something along the lines of “How far back….?” and Mom said “It doesn’t matter”.
I stopped and turned around and asked if I could help, since I was headed the direction that they’d come from. I offered to keep an eye out for whatever they’d lost and, since I was walking up and out of the canyon, if I found it I could put it visibly on one of the fence posts close to the exit to the park where they could retrieve it on their way out.
Mom smiled, thanked me, and said that it was just a little blue mitten worth only a dollar or two and not worth the effort.
I kept my eyes open anyway, but never saw it.
Walking home today, sitting on top of a bin near Cable Bridge, was a tiny little blue mitten.
Someone eventually found it, long after the family had left the park, and thoughtfully left it somewhere visible.
Somewhere is a little girl with only one mitten, and in the canyon sits a little blue mitten without a little girl.
