Mud

A perfect little moment this morning.

I am out on my morning hike. It has been raining here in Northern California for what seems like a week straight. I am hiking up a hill, and the trail looks like this:

I come stomping around a bend, and there, about thirty yards in front of me, is a little girl and her father. The girl is about three. She's wearing Hello Kitty rubber boots, a hat, and is standing right in the middle of the trail, in the mud. Her father is standing next to her.

I am:

• Unshaven
• Unshowered
• 6'2", 240 lbs and wearing jeans, a fishing vest, and boots that are covered in mud
• Listening to an iPod (Grateful Dead, 1973, RFK Stadium, "Morning Dew")

I walk up to them. I take my earphones out, and squat down next to the girl. She has huge brown eyes, and is very shy. I look at her, and I say "Do you like ... mud?"

Her face lights up. HUGE smile. Still shy, she half-whispers "Yeah."

I look at her for a second, smiling myself. "Me, too."

Then I stand up, put on my earphones, and continue my walk.