Colton’s Coconuts

Today was one of those days I became disgusted with myself over the amount of useless junk I have been carrying around in my purse. This seems to happen every now and then. I was digging around for some chapstick and, of course, couldn’t find it among all the old receipts, expired coupons, and dum dum lollipops I use to bribe my children in an emergency situation. In my frustration, I dumped all the contents of my purse on the counter and got to work sorting. I threw away plenty of items and felt satisfied as I started placing only the essentials back in the bag. And then I found it… a tiny little acorn. It was one of Colton’s “coconuts.” I’m sure at some point this summer he found it and had given it to me for safe keeping. His “coconuts” are some of his greatest treasures after all. 

I can’t even tell you when Colton’s obsession with coconuts started. I think at some point he decided it was a fun word to say but in Colton’s world a “coconut” is really an acorn. Colton is a little scavenger and has always loved finding and collecting things outside. All of the kids like doing this, but Colton is the most passionate about it. On multiple occasions we’ve brought home pinecones, feathers, acorns, or other random treasures. Usually, these treasures end up in buckets or cups in our garage and then stealthily disappear. But not Colton’s coconuts… I have never been able to bring myself to get rid of those. They are stashed all over the place in random spots because they always remind me of him and bring a smile to my face.

There is one on the floor of the minivan near the driver’s seat. It’s been there for months. I’m sure it had fallen there after returning from one of our trips to the park. I left it there because every time I get in the van, I see it and smile. John has received specific instructions each time he has taken the van to vacuum it out that he must leave Colton’s coconut in its special place. There are cups filled with them all over our garage. I even have stopped to take pictures of them to remind me of these simple and sweet summer memories.

One of the nights this past summer as I was putting the boys to bed, Colton started telling me again about his coconuts. He said he had found a bunch but couldn’t remember where he put them. We decided the next day we would look for some. I promised him a sticky note at his breakfast table spot with “find coconuts” on it as our first priority of the day. The next day, I tossed a handful of his acorns under a tree in our backyard. The boys all squealed with delight as they searched for coconuts with Colton. Colton of course carried the bucket, and the other two boys were quite happy to deliver any coconut they found to him. I couldn’t help but laugh over how much fun they had that morning and they wanted to do it again the next day. And the next. We did it a lot that summer and Colton loved seeing his little stash of coconuts grow. 

Honestly, if you ask Colton on any given morning what he dreamt about he will even respond with “coconuts!” I’m sure he does it mostly as a joke but there is a tiny part of me that could believe he is scampering about in his dreams at night searching for them. 

And so today, while I was begrudgingly cleaning out my purse, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit lucky I came across another one of Colton’s treasures. I know in my heart he specifically wanted to save this one because it was so little and cute, kind of like him. Colton loves scavenging for tiny treasures. And, as I placed all of my necessities back into my bag, I slipped that little acorn in there, too. Nothing makes me smile quite like coming across one of Colton’s coconuts and I will happily carry that one with me wherever I go.