Shun laughed and ran ahead of his parents in the grassy field. The tall grass almost reached his chin as he plowed a path for his mom and dad. They followed him, treading on the thin path behind him.
"Careful sweetie!" his mom called.
"Yes, mama!" he called back and once again dived into the depths of the field.
"Honey," his mom looked at his dad, "Can you go make sure he doesn't get lost?"
He laughed and said, "You worry too much, let him have some fun, he's big enough to be seen."
"But, what if he gets lost, or what if he falls down and gets hurt?" she asked.
Behind them, Shun listened to the conversation, he laughed when his mom started to worry over him and jumped on his dad who caught him and promptly placed him on his shoulders. "Papa is right, you worry too much," he said to him mom.
"Well, you can be quite a handful. Now, did you find a place you want to sit?" she asked.
Shun surveyed the territory from his perch and pointed towards a tree in the distance. "Under there," he said.
His dad shaded his eyes to get a better look at the tree and whistled. "You really want to go all that way?" he asked.
"Yeah, I bet it's nice and shady over there. We can eat out of the sun," Shun said.
The mom clapped her hands together, "I think that's a wonderful idea. It can't be too far, I say we go," she said.
His dad was outnumbered two to one, so he shrugged his shoulders with Shun still on them making Shun giggle. "Okay, let's go," he said.
Ten minutes later the family came to the shady spot and sat down on the cooler and shorter grass. Shun's dad pulled out a big blanket and set it down on the grass under the tree. "Okay everyone, get what you want," he said.
Shun opened the picnic basket in joy to see the wonderful food his mother made. He immediately took out a rice ball and began to devour it.
Shun's mom laughed, "Of course he went for that first," she whispered to her husband.
He chuckled and pulled out a western style ham sandwich. "Well, he's a kid. Wouldn't you go for that too? Let him have his fun," he said quietly back.
She sighed and pulled out her own peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Shun continued to gobble down his lunch. After two more rice balls and a cola he collapsed, with a full belly into his mother's lap. His mother was sipping iced tea as Shun started to fall asleep. She started to stroke his fin grey hair away from his face as he drifted into a blissful nap.
"And you say I spoil him," the dad chuckled.
She laughed quietly, "Well, you do. I don't ever remember telling you I didn't."
They talked quietly together as Shun napped on his mother's lap. However Shun was already five whole years old and he woke up after forty-five minutes. He opened his eyes and his mom's face was there to greet him. "Good morning, Sleepyhead," she said.
Shun gave her a large grin and sat up. "Can I go play?" he asked.
She looked at the sky and saw the sun was about to skim the horizon, but her son's grin melted her heart and she nodded, "For a few minutes."
"Yay!" Shun ran out into the large field and promptly began making grass tunnels.
"We need to go soon," her husband murmured in her ear.
She leaned into her husband's strong arms and laid her head on his shoulder, "I know, but we have a few minutes."
"Glad to know you can relax," he said, gathering her into a hug.
She smiled and leaned in for a small kiss. "I do," she whispered.