Cute kids=free stuff

Before Iz and I had kids I used to wonder what they would look like. Let's face it, there are some potential combinations there that would repulse Quasimoto. Israel's eyebrows with my eyes. . .My cheeks with his nose. But then we had Keahi and realized that there are beautiful combinations as well. As far back as I can remember people have gone, "Oh what a cute boy," and handed him things. There was the old Chinese woman on the bus who gave him a bag of coconut wafer cookies. She pulled them out of a large black garbage bag full of these homemade treats she was likely going to sell somewhere. Then there was the time at the swap meet when as we were leaving a van rolled past us, stopped, and a woman got out to give Keahi the cutest orange reversible hat that matched his outfit. Did I mention that I was already holding a grocery bag full of odds and ends toys that a vendor ran after us to give Keahi after we had passed her stall? And I think my favorite experience was when while waiting at the bus stop near the Social Services offices a homeless guy pulled out a tennis ball from his pack for Keahi to play with. When I tried to give it back once the bus arrived, he said it was a gift for my sweet son. Seriously? This man lives out of a backpack and he's giving my son a toy?

These acts of kindness and generosity are too numerous to recount and they have followed us wherever we go. Grenada. And even Brooklyn, NY. The other day I was talking to a friend on the phone outside of a tiny deli that had a produce stand outside. Then the produce guy walks over to us with a big double handful of cherries and hands them to Keahi. I think Natalie was probably confused by the random, "Thank you" that interrupted our conversation. And today while buying a map from a newstand in Manhattan, our boys got free lolipops.

I'm always grateful and a bit humbled whenever strangers reach out to us with random acts of kindness. Even in this big, scary city, people are full of spontaneous generosity. And it's not limited to Keahi. I feel so grateful to everyone who's helped make this transition so quickly. People have opened their homes to us and shared their knowledge and expertise with us unstintingly. Natlie, Amy and Pammy you have all been godsends. Thank you.