Backyard

August is here. Our six trees are planted in our once barren backyard. We have two white pines, a birch, maple and two blue spruce trees. I take a look outside. Yes, our yard does feel a bit more welcoming. Our two preschool aged daughters stand next to the trees smiling with hopeful looks on their faces. I stand back to grab my fairly new digital camera and take their photos. The youngest of the two, Holly quickly turns her head to point at a passing butterfly. I feel a quick rise in anger and tell her to hold still for once! The two white pines are the same height as our six year old. She smiles brightly as I snap the camera and capture the summer that we planted the trees, looking forward to the many years ahead of us.