For One Afternoon

Last Saturday afternoon, Jeff was coaching Connor's flag football game. Kaitlynn and I were cheering from the sidelines and Kevin was with the coaches because he had gotten roped into being the game statistician that day. I was taking some videos of the plays when all of a sudden I looked up and saw... Collin!!

It had been almost six months since we had seen Collin. We have been exchanging infrequent texts and messages, but he is still staying with his Mom and has been keeping his distance. We've been hoping that he would come and see us and the kids, but we weren't sure if and when we would see him again.

When I saw him, I was shocked but so excited. I gave him a hug and told him how great it was to see him. He was with his friend, Rainer, and they had come out to see Connor play. Jeff was coaching the team but saw Collin on the sidelines. When they were in the huddle, Jeff told Connor that Collin was here to see him and Connor was surprised, too.

When Collin arrived, he asked about Kaitlynn and I called her over. I said, "Look who's here!" She looked at Collin with a blank face for several seconds because she was having trouble recognizing him. Finally, it sunk in, and she was so excited to see him. It took her a little while to warm up, but after a few minutes, she was right back where she always used to be: in Collin's lap.

During halftime, Kevin joined us and we all watched the halftime performance. I looked over and saw a once-familiar sight.

I loved how Kaitlynn and Collin fell right back into step with one another, as if no time had passed at all.

After the game, Collin agreed to join us for an early dinner. It was so great to spend time with him again and we even managed a quick picture.

We had a LONG wait at the restaurant, but I didn't mind much. For one afternoon, all six of us were back together and everything just felt normal again.