Sleep

When I was about 17 I decided that I would never have children.  Now I have one of my own and I’ve taken responsibility for a part of the upbringing of a second.  I would not give them up for anything.  But this was not my plan.  They bring a lot of happiness and I feel that I’ve grown considerably because of having them in my life.  It’s also very rewarding when I can interest one of them in something that I can teach them-I’m a terrible teacher.  Right now we are babysitting my wife’s sister’s two children.  They are beautiful and well behaved children.  They have no outstanding flaws beyond the behavior of a normal child.  But having two kids to keep an eye on makes me wonder why and how anyone would want to have two in quick succession.  I take my hat off to all the people out there who have the energy to do this right (as my sister-in-law and her husband are clearly doing).  I know I wouldn’t want the job full time.  Like I said, these are good kids, I can’t imagine what it would be like to have two little difficult children at once.  For example, there is a child at the playschool where Guðjón has been for the last 4 years who is a real terror.  Ironically, his name is Engill (which is Icelandic for Angel).  A couple of weeks ago I got Guðjón at school and saw that he had two bite marks-one bloody and one heavily bruised-on his forehead.  These injuries were incurred during an attack by Engill.  When I was getting him ready for bed that night I found four more bite marks-one on his arm and the others on his torso.  One shakes his head upon finding such on a kid who doesn’t instigate fights.  I wonder what the boy’s parents are like.  I don’t know them.  But I doubt that the troubles this little boy has stem solely from some behavioral problem in his head.  The old nature v. nurture question rears its ugly head once again.  
Right now both Hólmfríður and Björn Hermann are lying in bed.  Björn is asleep and Hólmfríður is quietly tinkering with something-she is relaxing into a sleeping state of mind.  For anyone who doesn’t have babies you should look forward to watching them sleep when you do have some of your own.  Watching a child sleep is one of the most calming things in the world.  Their little faces are unscarred by life and when they sleep peacefully they ooze tranquility and simple honest beauty.  Just looking at a baby who is sleeping happily makes me feel like there really is peace on Earth.