Nightshirt

I woke up late today, 6 am. Since Saturday was the beginning of daylight savings time, I guess it was really my normal wake up time, 5am. I went to turn off my I-Phone alarm and heard the slap, slap, slap of Meazi's feet coming down the hallway. She was wearing a shirt I gave her to sleep in. It was a shirt I got in grammar school, the letters JULIE ironed on the back, a kind of baseball jersey with a white chest, and long purple arms. She had her gold sleep cap on. I joined her on the couch. She said, "Mommy, I want in." She climbed into my sleep shirt, Steven's shirt, a super soft grey cotton shirt he got from work, thin enough to sleep in, but with long sleeves to keep my arms warm during the cool night. She stuck her head up through the neck, her face now touching mine, her chest against mine. She put her head on my shoulder and we sat their together in his shirt, her in my shirt, the two of us a strange two-headed groggy person. We sat there silently for a moment and then she said, "They made you put Croq's on." She was taking about the orphanage and how they make you change your shoes, and put on a pair of their 'inside shoes'. I said, "Yes they did Meazi."

Melese woke up and called out for me.

If he hadn't, I would have stayed with her like that... forever.