When Becky was little we'd all be sitting downstairs watching a movie or X-Files or something else that our family watched all together and we'd hear Becky rummaging around upstairs. This was not unusual. Becky usually rummaged around to find whatever she could find to build whatever she was building. And you knew whatever she was building would be cool. Even as a fifteen year old I was inspired by her three year old imagination. It amazed me.

But this isn't a story about one of her creations.

So, we'd hear this rummaging around and five minutes later five year old or six year old or seven year old Becky would slowly come down the stairs carrying a huge tray of apple juice, glasses, and cookies. She'd set it on the coffee table and stand back with this serious look on her face. (I don't know what that look meant. But she'd often use it when she had finished something important. Maybe she was judging her work...) We'd pause whatever we were doing and exclaim over her thougthfulness and we'd serve each other and Becky would climb up on one of the couches and cuddle (usually with me) and watch the rest of the movie or show with us.

No prompting, no hinting, no one saying how thirsty they were. She'd just come up with this plan as if she were thinking, "What would my family like right now?" It always made my heart glow.

Yesterday I came home from work and the door was open and the light was on upstairs. I still had my ipod on and when I turned it off I could hear some rummaging upstairs. "Hello?" I called. "Hi" Becky answered. "What are you doing?" I asked as I pulled off my hat and jacket. "Nothing" she called down. "It sounds like you're doing my dishes or something" I unwound my scarf. "I'm not." I listened again as I took off my shoes. "Are you doing my recycling?" Without a pause Becky replied, "No." I climbed the stairs to where Becky was sitting on the floor of my kitchen, dishes done in the sink, my recycling crushed and spread out around her like a jigsaw puzzle as she tried to fit it in the box. She then moved on to organize and put away all the movies lying out around my tv (and arrange them alphabetically) and sort out all my unsorted bills for me. Cue the heart glow. I offered to pay her but all she would accept was half a sub from subway.

What a girl.