Vaya con Dios

The family across the street is moving today. They were the ones who greeted us when we moved in eight years ago. We met them in waves - there are eleven of them. At times it was like their house was one of those clown cars - people just kept coming out of it. Nine kids. Well, there weren't nine kids when we moved in - two more have joined them since we got here. The oldest daughter has just welcomed her first son - the circle of life continues.
We quickly became the "cookie house" for the kids. In a house full of nine competing wants and needs, our house became an oasis of calm and focused attention. The little girls who brought over their Barbies to share tea parties with my wife have grown up and are looking for the next best thing. The boys who used to have to wait for their mother to cross the street are now crossing their little brothers to come over and play cars with our son.
We provided dictionaries and math tutoring. We loaned colored pencils and paper for craft projects and Mother's Day cards. We shared our leftover birthday cake. We gave them odd jobs to do to raise money for a Father's Day present. We loaned them a lawn mower to cut another neighbor's lawn for a few extra bucks. We were a safe place to play.
We had a friendly competition at Christmas for the neighborhood's best lights. They shared their inflatable snowman with us, since they only had room for an inflatable teddy bear in their yard. My wife snuck over late one night and hung a blue ribbon on their fence. We knew that they were really going to move when the three reindeer that had been on their roof for years finally came down. There are still some toys and car parts in the front yard, so we know they'll be back - but I miss them already.