Life As Told By Trains

There has been some turmoil in our life recently. And it's obviously bothering Liam. First, Gran-Gran disappeared abruptly. She came back for a visit last week, and although Liam is thrilled to see her, he's been acting jumpy whenever she leaves to go home. I do some tutoring in the evenings. It's been a bit slow lately, but picked up last week. Then, to further fuel the fire, Kevin left for Florida on Friday. Liam's been extra-clingy the last couple of weeks, and it all came to life for me yesterday.

Liam had a collection of train cars on the table. One by one, he pushed them off the edge of the table, mumbling something as each one fell. I asked him what was going on with the trains. "That green guy must go teach. That blue guy went home to Pop-Pop. That red guy got on a flying plane to Florida. Everybody's gone now."

At that point he crumbled into my lap, saying, "Come, Mommy. 'Tay wif Baby. Baby no like alone by self."

I feel so bad for him, and I knew all this was bothering him, but seeing it played out with the trains just broke my heart. Fortunately, this week looks relatively stable. It's spring break, so no teaching for Mommy, and Daddy's coming home tomorrow. I'm hoping for a return to regular life. My heart can't take any more lonely trains. I doubt Liam can, either.