Mother and Child

A fond memory of my trip to China in November of 2007 is of an afternoon at Banyan Lake Park in Guilin. Our tour bus had arrived early for dinner at a local restaurant so our guide told us that we had some time to explore on our own—to walk in the park, to sit on a bench and rest, or to wander through some of the local shops.

I decided to walk along the lake and take a few pictures. Unexpectedly I began to hear the clear, strong voice of a child singing. Of course I didn’t recognize the melody but it reminded me of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” The more I proceeded along the path, the stronger the voice became until at last I came upon a very young boy singing to his mother. He was standing a few feet away from her, smiling and gesturing as he sang. But once he saw me, the magic of the moment was broken. He walked over to his mother and stood quietly next to her.

I had wanted to take a picture of the young boy singing. It would have been a charming shot. But the photo I snapped (above) is probably better than the one I had intended because the tenderness expressed between mother and child makes me smile whenever I think of it.