starbucks
"This is my lovey!" my growing girl flings her beloved blanket at the unsuspecting gentleman sipping coffee at Starbucks. He deftly catches plush elephant with the fraying pink blanket and tosses it back to her, a delighted smile on his face.
I am still getting used to the attention that grown men pay to children here. In the most innocent way. Apparently, my third child has realized the resource of attention that she now can command. When we first arrived, she shrunk away from the attention, playing at my side with wide, concerned eyes.
I've been told that shop keepers give candy to children. I'm not quite ready for that. Yet when a couple stops beside our stroller and cluck at Hanna with smiles that relish her every move, it is quite sweet. They ask her name, and repeat it back, "Ha-na?"
Abby now seeks out our gardener and runs up with a big smile, waving. "Hello, Mommed! (Mohammed)" He returns with a big smile and reaches for her hand and kisses the top of it, touseling her hair.
Arabs delight in children.
*****
When I was a college student traveling in Europe, when we needed a slice of America, we could find it at the nearest McDonald's. In the 21st century, we find that familiarity at Starbucks. Our first stop at Starbucks in just about two months of living here. It wasn't just that I wanted the sense of home. With the older two at a friend's house, I planned a special outing with Abby. Third children, as I experienced firsthand, can get quite lost in the shuffle of everyday life.
We arrived at the coffee shop after a two block walk from our apartment building. Colorful prints of contemporary cafe art adorned the walls, the same type as we found in Florida, Tennessee, Connecticut. We ordered two frappucinos: one with coffee, one vanilla flavored. Besides having to silence my financial sense in paying out fourteen dollars for two drinks, we had a wonderful time together. We slurped our drinks as we played "I Spy."
On our way out, Abby showed the gentleman her lovey again and he smiled and waved. Me, I was just happy to have time with my lovely girl who is three going on thirteen. And in the meantime, taking one step forward in living in this small patch of desert called Jordan.
I am still getting used to the attention that grown men pay to children here. In the most innocent way. Apparently, my third child has realized the resource of attention that she now can command. When we first arrived, she shrunk away from the attention, playing at my side with wide, concerned eyes.
I've been told that shop keepers give candy to children. I'm not quite ready for that. Yet when a couple stops beside our stroller and cluck at Hanna with smiles that relish her every move, it is quite sweet. They ask her name, and repeat it back, "Ha-na?"
Abby now seeks out our gardener and runs up with a big smile, waving. "Hello, Mommed! (Mohammed)" He returns with a big smile and reaches for her hand and kisses the top of it, touseling her hair.
Arabs delight in children.
*****
When I was a college student traveling in Europe, when we needed a slice of America, we could find it at the nearest McDonald's. In the 21st century, we find that familiarity at Starbucks. Our first stop at Starbucks in just about two months of living here. It wasn't just that I wanted the sense of home. With the older two at a friend's house, I planned a special outing with Abby. Third children, as I experienced firsthand, can get quite lost in the shuffle of everyday life.
We arrived at the coffee shop after a two block walk from our apartment building. Colorful prints of contemporary cafe art adorned the walls, the same type as we found in Florida, Tennessee, Connecticut. We ordered two frappucinos: one with coffee, one vanilla flavored. Besides having to silence my financial sense in paying out fourteen dollars for two drinks, we had a wonderful time together. We slurped our drinks as we played "I Spy."
On our way out, Abby showed the gentleman her lovey again and he smiled and waved. Me, I was just happy to have time with my lovely girl who is three going on thirteen. And in the meantime, taking one step forward in living in this small patch of desert called Jordan.
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