Dave’s Blurb for February

I’m gonna miss holding hands
with Aubrey.

She’s at that age—the age when
little girls don’t want to hold your hand, especially when you enter Quail
Springs Mall. Walking through the parking lot toward the mall is okay, but
there’s an invisible barrier surrounding the mall that causes our hands to
separate. Inside, we walk together as we head to the theater, her hands stuffed
in her jacket pockets, her eyes scanning for her peers.

I understand. It’s a rite of
passage. It’s familiar—I’ve been here before with my daughters, and now it’s my
granddaughter’s time.

I will miss her little hand.
Perhaps it’s as comforting to me as it is to her. I have someone to guide, to
care for, to protect—and then they let go. And start doing it for themselves. A
new age of independence.

After our movie, I told her I
would buy her something at her favorite store, Justice. Because that’s what
papas do. As we browse through hundreds of sequined tops and a multitude of
unicorn products, she finally tells me she’s made her selection. As we cross
the parking lot to the car, I enjoy the moment. She holding her new doll and
I’m holding her hand. 

Dave Miller, Publisher/Back40
Design President