Stop, Luke and Listen

We were walking home from school yesterday and the wind picked up.  As the yellow and orange leaves detached from their branches, Luke stopped.

"Oooooh, this is my favorite part!"

When the leaves finally ended their swirls on the ground, he started back up his trek home.

"That was AWESOME!  I love fall."

But here's the thing.  He would say that about every season, every sunset, every storm.  He notices and appreciates it all.  Luke will wake up early and instead of stealing a few more minutes of sleep, he'll watch the sun come up.  He takes those extra seconds to stop and smell the flowers.  I already love him so much, but this makes me love him even more.  Because of Luke, I don't miss the way the crickets chirp in the middle of the day here.  I don't miss the smell of thunderstorm rain.  I don't miss the the crunch of leaves under my feet.

He notices it all.  And I get to be one of the lucky ones he shares it with.  For that, I'm thankful.

My heart overflows.