Red Rock, or God's Beet Poop

After a weekend, in the murky waters of depression, having been completely dissolved in the heat, it was on a regular work day that we managed to surface again and take a breath of fresh air.
The morning started with Sami’s 9th month well-check, where, of course we found out that he’s a wunderkind, who has the motor skills of an 11-month old, and can pick small objects up – like buggies or poop – and move them to places…like his mouth. Daddy’s so proud!
A highlight in our day was a trip to little Bulgaria, as known as “Natalie’s Bistro”, where two soccer games were going on two different TVs simultaneously. Sami witnessed some of the most amazing sounds he has ever heard in his life – the yelling and swearing of the authentic Bulgarian soccer fans! I think after the third scream he figured out that they were NOT getting their limbs cut off and relaxed a little, so he could scream himself, and be completely ignored by all the fans.
It was fun! We remembered what we’re planning to get back to in a year and it was scary and funny at the same time.


It’s so nice when there is a plan and everything goes according to it for once! Even though, a rare occurrence, moments like those make you think you are in control and give you the pleasurable feeling of the puppet-master.
With a backpack full of sandwiches, diapers and toys – ready to, break a human back – we drove off to Red Rock, while Sami slept in the car – perfect timing!
He was like an extra layer of clothes to me, both of us snuggled with the baby carrier, in the 95°F (35°C) but he doesn’t seem to notice the heat like his dad. There’s so much to see and explore, and he’s amused with everything, so the hell with the heat!


Red Rock is that beautiful valley, ten minutes from Vegas, where God has taken a mountain size poop, after having had a ton of beets! The poop-like shaped and layered rocks are of “divine” beauty and you don’t have to be a connoisseur to want to dive in them!



After admiring them for a while, we took a ten minute trip to a nice shady place, for a picnic. Sami got SO MAD AT US for not bringing him a sandwich that demanded food immediately. So, on his ninth mini-birthday, he tried chewing on a piece of bread and almost choked on it. We just had to switch to banana, but he bit off the biggest piece ever, and since all four parents’ hands were dirty and dusty from the “hike”, we taught him how the birds feed worms to their chickens, and gave him banana kisses!


I know that some psychologist puritans may scold us here and now, but I couldn’t care less! It was the sweetest couple of kisses ever and I ain’t taking ‘em back!
It broke my heart when I had to leave my family behind and go to work. I feel it as my duty and accept it, but today Sami is already a bit bigger. I remember how a wise man once told me and Alex: “Now you sacrifice your health, to make money. Later, you’ll pay even more money to fix your health, but you’ll never get it back!”
That’s how I felt about my youth, about my son’s childhood! I am already missing so much of his development that I just know: one day, all the money in the world won’t make him little and cute like he is now, and I would still want to pay it if it could.


One of the biggest dramas of the human life!
If only there was a way…