Space Invaders

I was sitting alone in a small, quiet corner of my aunt's house reading and writing...
All of a sudden... here they come...
My children.
Seemingly out of nowhere...
With stuff!
Books, pillows, art supplies, toys, animals...
Too much stuff for this little corner.
Too many people, as well.

I clearly had the "Seriously? What the hell!" look on my face.
A look they know all too well... and still, they smiled...
That "We know this is pissing you off and we don't really care" smile.

I sighed.
I shook my head.
I deepened the furl in my brow in an effort to continue to visually convey my displeasure...
And to suppress my own smile that threatened to creep across my face.
It is impossible to resist these beautiful little creatures that invade my space.
It is futile, as the saying goes.
A day will come when I will look back on these little intrusions and miss them.

For a mother, complete solitude comes in tiny bits and about as often as eclipses, cicadas, comets, and blue moons...
I wait patiently for its return.