Elephants & Lego

We are lucky to live in Sarnia in that we got to see Mike & Sarah more frequently than one would expect with them living "so far away" in Kingston. With Joan's family from Sarnia and Caroline's family's cottage in Forest, Mike & Sarah made the trek this way for many summer visits.

When Mike & I figured out that Sarnia was a commonality, he told me the joke that his parents were from the "2 armpits of Ontario" - Cornwall & Sarnia. Living in Sarnia it of course made me laugh out loud (home of the Chemical Valley) ... and the comment also gave me some insights into what Cornwall must be like! Then, when Sarah worked in Cornwall some years later I got to see it first hand :)

During one of their visits this way, they headed right into Sarnia proper. My husband Mike and I decided to introduce them to our favourite pizza restaurant for dinner - Firenzes ... a true mom & pop small business with the best pizza around. During dinner, Mike could see that our daughter Olivia loved to draw (place mat style). With a gentle hand and soft smile, he took the time to show her that straight lines were doing her elephant sketch no favours ... she might want to try smaller strokes / wispy lines; "it makes it look more real," he said (quoted back to me by Olivia tonight). She was 5 or 6 years old, maybe younger. She really worked from then on to incorporate Mike's idea into future drawings. Having no artistic insights myself, I have found myself reminding Olivia throughout the years about what Mike taught her that day.

Later that visit, Mike found our lego bin. He was right into it - focused. He set to work and built Olivia a white lego elephant .... I'm telling you, it was good. You knew that he had some "experience" with lego - old school style, no models needed. Needless to say, Olivia thought Mike was pretty amazing. She hadn't asked him to build anything - he just did .... and of course in theme with her previous day's sketching.

Small glimpses into great times with great friends,

Colleen