Another Thursday night,

The rush, rush, rush of karate, feeding the small humans, and homework.

I was struck suddenly by a thought as I read with my grade one child.

How did we ever learn?

The act of sounding out words made me feel dazed, as though I had stepped into an alternate universe.

It made sense, but it didn’t. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t effortlessly know how to make letters into words, how easily that has always came to me.

I can’t remember not knowing what words sound like when you read them from paper.

I watched as my child sounded out the letters, made words, figured it out.

In that moment, watching their uncompromising dedication to sounding that word out, I was filled with such pride.

It may have been something small, but I was so happy they were trying.

Hard work is it’s own reward,

and as they read the word triumphantly and smiled,

I knew that they’d just won a gold.