Butterflies

It is beautiful weather. We are enjoying the mornings and/or afternoons in the garden, as the sun is not too hot these days. You can feel in the air that winter is not far off, but as long as this weather lasts we will spend as much time as possible downstairs between the flowers and the trees.

It is funny to see the butterflies against a background of trees in full fall colours. It is the first time I notice consciously that we have butterflies in fall. Every time I see one, I’m astonished to see them. Maybe it is the first time we have butterflies in fall. I don’t remember seeing them around after summer before.

Zakaria had his hair cut short all over for the first time. I find it suits him. It took a long time to persuade his brothers to have his hair cut short all over. They wanted to keep it long on the top. Zakaria has the same fine brown hair as I have which becomes blond after some time in the sun… A real “coupe soleil”. They love it. Theirs is thick curly dark brown and, of course, they would prefer to have it differently.

Zakaria likes to go to the hairdresser’s. He loves the attention and the spray of perfume at the end. A haircut for a small child like that only costs 25 SYP which is about 35 Euro cent. And even that the barber won’t take from Zakaria. He gets his haircut for free.

The villagers love him babbling this strange language with some Arabic words in between.

I notice him learning more and more of the two languages every day and he is beginning to realize that there are two different languages.

The other day, I took him in his pyjama’s out on the balcony in the morning. He wanted to peak over the wall to see his brother Tallal, who was equally enjoying the sun sipping a coffee.

Tallal said : Tay, schrab halib (come drink some milk). Zakaria immediately wanted to go down. While I was dressing him, he looked at me cleverly and said : Halib, da’s melk (Halib, that’s milk).

At 2 years 3 months he is becoming eloquent enough to start arguing with me. When I’m not happy about something that he’s doing or did, he starts explaining why he did it or what he really wanted to do. When he wants something and he doesn’t get it, he first tries to order me what to do. If it fails, his emotions take over and he gets a hysterical fit which become easier to get rid off.

I must be doing something right.