Slow Is A Kind Of Kind
In the garden, there is a snail.
Lina says hello to him every morning. The snail does not say hello back, because that is not how snails work.
"Are you my friend?" asks Lina.
The snail moves one antenna. Slowly.
"Is that a yes?"
The snail moves the other antenna. More slowly.
"I think that is a yes," says Lina.
She brings him a small piece of lettuce. She sits beside him while he decides what he thinks of the lettuce. This takes a long time.
The other children in the garden are running. Shouting. Building things and knocking them down.
Lina sits with the snail. The snail eats one tiny corner of the lettuce. He has had a busy day.
"Goodnight, snail," says Lina, when the sun starts to fall behind the fence.
The snail does not say goodnight. But he is still there in the morning. He has been waiting.
Some friends are slow. Slow is a kind of kind.