We sat for a long while together, my arms wrapped around her chubby body, her small head resting against my chest. She gazed up at me with her big blue eyes and smiled the smile she got from me. I smiled back at the little two-year-old wonder snuggled in my lap. It was one of those moments I knew we both cherished.

“I like snuggling with you,” I told her, “and I like you.”

She gazed back at me, thoughtful.

Then she replied, “I like tic tacs. I wonder if I have any left. I’ll go check.”

And she was gone.

Moment over, spell broken, Mama deserted.

Ah, reality.