Only a Mother

Clare was fascinated with the hail that fell here last week. "It's like little ice chunks," she exclaimed.

"Yeah . . . " Grant said. "What did you think hail was?"

"Well, at home it's tinier--like frozen rain."

"Sleet, you mean," Grant said.

"I guess so," Clare said.

She sent a telephone picture to her mother--of a marble-sized hailstone in the palm of her hand.

The text reply soon came back: "Whose hand was that? If it was your hand, you've gained weight." For Clare, that's a good thing. Undiagnosed food allergies have interfered with her nutrition in the past, and feeling better now that she eats differently is having a good effect on her all around.

Still, I suspect that only a mother could see a picture of a hand and know that it signified weight gain.