i love this kid, part 3 - lukitza

lukitza
Originally uploaded by s_inthecity.

this is part three in the birthday boy trilogy ... the trifecta of awesome nephews.

unlike the bigs M & A, i wasn't there when lukitza was born. my sister-in-law was in labor for weeks, as i recall, before the ball really got rolling. b, who's terribly close with his sister, really couldn't get his head around the fact that his sister was going to be a mom. so just as lukitza was about to make his appearance, when b hopped into the shower, i bought him a plane ticket, reserved him a car and started packing a bag. seeing a child on his first day is, i think, such a touchstone for family. and there was no way i would have b missing that. (i also suspect his sister would have never forgiven me if i'd not surprised her by putting b on a plane to see her and her boy. so my motives were not entirely pure.)

i think lukitza's brilliance has been well-documented on this here blog. but i don't talk about his sweetness too often. he's a kid that plays one at a time. he likes the intimacy of playing just with uncle b or nommie or auntie sa. and living so far from him, i love that intimacy too. when we were up for our short visit a few weeks back, lukitza spent much of sunday on an auntie sa kick. we wandered around the outside of the house, he showing me where they'd built frosty this winter and asking where he'd gone. (sorry, kid. if someone's going to tell you frosty's dead, it sure as hell is not going to be me. that would seriously undermine my coolest aunt ever status. go ask your mom.) that's when we spotted a family flying kites. lukitza had never seen a kite before, and was in awe. we ran to the edge of the yard, and he just watched with those big eyes. he stood there staring for a really long time, with his favorite auntie kneeling behind him, hands on his shoulders. out of nowhere, he turned around, put his little hand on my cheek, sighed and said, i love you auntie sa, smiled and turned back around. i, of course, had a lump the size of a brick in my throat.

there is a big shindig in the works for lukitza's 2nd birthday. when his mom told me she'd bought kites for all the kids, since lukitza is now all about the kites, i couldn't help but hope he thinks of his beloved auntie sa when he sees kites. because i know i'll never look at a kite the same again.

so, happy birthday, lukitza. you really know how to talk to a girl!