Anyway, I gave the clock a look and I gave it some thought. It was quite early. There was plenty of time to make an 11 AM meeting. I didn't really want to wait another 4 weeks before I went to Meeting again. I asked Alex if he would like to go to First Day School again. He said "YEAH! They have great toys there!" That settled it. I got us dressed and ready and we went out the door.
We arrived at 14th Street by 10:30-ish. Alex preferred to take the L train (because it goes to Brooklyn). We got off at 1st Avenue and had plenty of time for breakfast. We stopped at Subway where I had a magic sandwich. I say it was "magic" because it was only about 370 calories, but it filled me up for a really long time. Must remember that protein/fiber balance again, but that's for another journal.
We arrived at the Meeting House just before 11 AM where Mylitta and several children were waiting outside a locked door (waiting for the guy with the key to open it). Alex was all set though. He told me I could go to Meeting now. He was off to school. Oh, OK.
At Meeting, I had some thoughts about a quote from Harriet Tubman and how she advised slaves risking escape that they could trust Quakers every time. It made me think about the importance of keeping one's word and being known as an honest person at all times. Again, this is stuff for another journal. There's more Alex story to tell here.
After Meeting concluded, I made my way to the Nursery room only to see an amazing sight when I walked in. There was a man reading a story to a table full of youngin's which included MY rapt son. Since when does he enjoy Storytime with anyone else? (He told me later that he was there because it was SNACK n' Story. And the teacher has a lot of mini goldfish.) The man reading the story, upon seeing me, said that it couldn't be noon already. He asked the kids if they wanted to hear one more story. Many said "Yes" including my son!
Well, this was pretty awesome.
After he concluded the story, I said my thank yous and introduced myself to the teachers. Mylitta suggested that Alex thank Cal, who had read the story. We went up to Cal who was then helping a boy pick up some toys he'd dumped. Alex thanked him for reading the story and I mentioned that he must have some magic Story Skillz since Alex NEVER sits for Storytime with any other adults.
This led to brief conversation in which I'd learned that Cal isn't a Friend. He identifies as Jewish, but he sends his son, Harry (the boy he was helping) to this playgroup because he likes the Friends' principles. He then mentioned that the following Saturday was Harry's birthday and that Alex was welcome to come.
Wow! Alex's first peer birthday party. How cool! We exchanged information and I thanked Cal for his generosity. I assured him we'd see him the following weekend.
Alex, of course, was not yet done with the day.
Sunday, October 16th
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