This is my nephew Kaj, and one of the great pleasures of my recent trip to Decorah was in being reminded all over again of what a special little guy he is. He is friendly, fun- loving, eternally positive, thoughtful, kind-hearted, and a tireless bundle of energy. And after all that you might be inclined to add ‘and he has malformed hands and feet’- except that it seems so utterly beside the point. And if you want proof, just watch how he runs and jumps and swims with ease of a combination track star/gymnast. . . or how he plays the piano and now the violin. Nothing seems out of his reach, and he seems completely disinterested in – and maybe even utterly unaware of – Mother Nature’s prank which has made him different. Of course, these are the only hands and feet he has ever had, and he seems amazingly content with them and incredibly adept at making them work for whatever the task at hand might be. And watching that is the surest way to put a big smile on my face. And on top of it all, he sings! Like a bird! I am excited about that and impatient to see where that particular gift will play out in his life in the years to come.
Any visit to the Spencer-Bergs has to include some musical performances and I was treated to some fine violin-playing by Anna (and Randi) – and some singing and guitar-playing by Aidan – and from Kaj came performances on the piano and violin, and it took no pleading or prodding whatsoever for him to perform. And as he stood there with that quarter-size violin under his chin and his hands perched just so, there was this wonderful sense of pride which he had that was downright inspiring.
Kaj and I also spent some time in front of the computer- of course – as he taught me how to play one of his favorite video games. It was called something like TechQuest, and it’s not much more than a sci-fi version of the classic “this town’s not big enough for the both of us” duel . . . except that instead of old fashioned guns, the combatants are using weapons that fire all sorts of energy bolts and plasma fields. Kaj does have quite a fascination with guns and weapons, much to his parents’ chagrin – but Kaj would not be the first little boy to have a hobby that is somewhat at odds with who he really is. I, for instance, was the gentlest and shyest of souls growing up, yet I was tremendously fascinated by the rock ‘em sock ‘em worlds of professional wrestling and roller derby and couldn’t get enough of either of them. And my favorite things to watch on television were some of the most violent cartoons – at least they were violent by the standards of 1967 children’s television. And look how I turned out! So I feel strongly that this is just one more thing that is fascinating to Kaj- and it folds into a rich life filled with plenty of physical activity, music-making, and lots and lots of love. This is one more area in which his imagination is being stimulated and deepened – and maybe someday this interest will become something more than it should be, but right now it just feels like one more thing I love about Kaj. . . and when he starts demonstrating the sounds of all these various weapons, I’m as delighted and as entertained as when he plays “Turkey in the Straw” on his beautiful new fiddle.
By the way, I had to give myself a name in order to play this video game with Kaj – and I chose “Opera Man.” And I’m happy to report that Opera Man did very well. . . maybe not quite as well as Kaj did, but better than I usually do in such electronic arenas.
My only hope is that upon my next visit, Kaj will remember to call me Uncle Greg rather than Grandpa Greg. After the 8th or 9th time being called Grandpa, I was ready to reach for the hair dye.
It’s a good thing I love my nephew as much as I do.