I ran across this story in my journal recently and wanted to share it. Journaling is a great vehicle for writing your life stories. You can jot down some notes or sentences and then remember them later and fill them out.

I met Sylvie on my evening walk. She is two and was on the arm of her tired-looking but gently cheerful Dad.

"Hi," she called from across the street.

"Well, hi there," I replied.

'Let me see your eyes," she said.

I removed my sunglasses. "Are you a grownup?' she asked.

"Yes," I said.

"Where is your little girl?" she asked.

"I don't have one," I said.

"Why?" she asked.

"It just never happened,' I said.

"Oh," she said, looking puzzled.

"That's a bright green shirt she has," her father remarked.

"Yes," I said, "and yours is pink!"

She squirmed in delight looking down at her t-shirt with the big pink heart on the front.

"See you," I walked away and waved. She waved back as they slowly walked on.

I laughed to myself enjoying the perfect evening, looking forward to watering my flowers. I barely remember a time when that conversation would have made me cripplingly sad because I wasn't able to have children of my own. But now that seems like the distant past.

I thought to myself, what if I had said, "I don't know," when she asked if I was a grownup?