holding Micah

For the last half hour, Micah sat on my lap. He wasn't sick or tired even. So I held him. Sometimes he just wants to be held. It could be a desire for attention. But it's more than that. It's the desire for human touch, for love expressed in an embrace and it's stronger on a day when the leaves cling to the ground and the sky hovers close to the homes. I wonder when it stops. I wonder when children learn to abandon the desire to be held. And I wonder what I've lost as a result, being an adult who gives awkward hugs and keeps careful watch over personal space.