Kenz and the Best Swing in the Park

In the middle of the park there was a giant old tree with a wide, strong branch. And hanging from that branch, on two thick ropes, was the best swing in the whole town.

It was a wooden swing, smooth from many years of children sitting on it. When you swung high, you could see over the bushes and the flowerbeds, all the way to the ice cream cart at the gate. When you swung low, your toes brushed the soft grass. Kenz loved that swing more than any slide or climbing frame.

On Friday afternoon, Kenz ran into the park ahead of Mama, her curls bouncing and her pink shoes flashing in the sun.

"The swing is empty! The swing is empty!" she sang.

She climbed onto the wooden seat, held the ropes tight, and kicked her legs. Forward and back. Forward and back. Higher and higher, until the leaves of the big tree were tickling the sky above her.

"Wheee!" Kenz laughed. "I'm flying!"

She swung and swung. She counted to fifty. She counted to a hundred. She sang her favorite song about a little bird, all the way through, two times.

Then she saw a boy standing near the tree. He had sandy hair that stuck up at the front and a yellow T-shirt. He was watching the swing with big, hopeful eyes. He did not say anything. He just waited.

Kenz looked away and swung higher.

"It's my turn," she thought. "I was here first."

She swung some more. When she looked again, the boy was still there. He had sat down on the grass now, and he was pulling at little blades of it.

Mama came over with a bottle of water. "You look like you are having a wonderful time," she said.

"I am!" said Kenz. "I'm going to swing all day!"

Mama looked at the boy, and then at Kenz. "I think somebody else would like a turn," she said gently.

"But I was here first," said Kenz. "And I love the swing."

"I know you do," said Mama. "Do you think he loves it too?"

Kenz looked at the boy. He was watching another child fly down the slide, but every few seconds his eyes came back to the swing.

"Maybe," said Kenz quietly.

"How long has he been waiting?" asked Mama.

Kenz thought about it. She had counted to a hundred. She had sung her song two times. That was a long time.

"A very long time," she admitted.

"How would you feel," asked Mama, "if you were the one waiting on the grass?"

Kenz imagined it. She imagined sitting on the grass, watching someone else fly up into the leaves, while her legs felt wiggly and her tummy felt hopeful and then a little bit sad. She did not like that feeling at all.

She dragged her pink shoes on the ground, and the swing slowed down. Swish… swish… swish… stop.

Kenz climbed off. She walked over to the boy.

"Hello," she said. "Do you want a turn on the swing?"

The boy's face lit up like the sun coming out. "Yes, please!" he said. "I'm Sami."

"I'm Kenz," said Kenz. "You can swing for a hundred. That's how long I did."

Sami ran to the swing and climbed on. He kicked and kicked, but the swing only moved a tiny bit.

"I can't go high," he said. "My big sister usually pushes me."

"I can push you!" said Kenz. She stood behind the swing, the way Baba stood behind her. She put her hands on Sami's back and pushed. Not too hard. Just right.

Forward and back. Forward and back.

"Higher!" laughed Sami.

Kenz pushed again, and Sami flew up toward the leaves. Kenz counted out loud. "One, two, three, four…"

Something funny happened. Kenz was not on the swing, but she was laughing just as much as when she was. Every time Sami said "Wheee!", a happy bubble popped inside her chest.

When she got to a hundred, Sami dragged his feet and stopped. "Your turn now," he said. "I'll push you!"

Kenz climbed on. Sami pushed, and he was strong. Kenz flew up so high that she could see the ice cream cart at the gate, and a little white dog chasing a ball, and Mama waving from the bench.

"Wheee!" she shouted.

They took turns all afternoon. One hundred for Kenz. One hundred for Sami. Sometimes they counted fast and giggled. Sometimes they counted slowly, in silly deep voices, and giggled even more.

After a while, a little girl in a red dress came and stood by the tree. She looked at the swing with big, hopeful eyes.

Kenz and Sami looked at each other.

"Do you want a turn?" they asked at the same time.

The little girl nodded shyly. Kenz and Sami pushed her together, one on each side. Not too hard. Just right.

When the sun began to go down and the sky turned orange, Mama called, "Time to go home, Kenz!"

Kenz said goodbye to Sami and to the little girl in the red dress. "See you next Friday at the swing!" she called.

On the way home, Kenz held Mama's hand and skipped.

"Mama," she said, "I thought if I gave Sami a turn, I would have less fun. But I had more fun. Isn't that strange?"

Mama squeezed her hand. "It's not strange at all," she said. "Fun is like that. When we share it, it grows."

Kenz thought about the happy bubbles in her chest and smiled.

"Next Friday," she said, "I'm going to take turns from the very beginning."

Lesson: Taking turns is kind and fair. When we share our fun with others, it often grows bigger for everyone.