Easter brunch was already in full swing\u2014ham in the oven, pastel eggs everywhere, and my grandma yelling at people to \u201cget out of her kitchen if you\u2019re not stirring something.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Roman walked in.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s five. And he was dressed head to toe like a scuba diver.<\/p>\n
Wetsuit. Flippers. A snorkel taped to a pair of swimming goggles. He even had a soda bottle spray-painted silver strapped to his back like an oxygen tank.<\/p>\n
At first, we all just kinda stared at him like\u2026 what?<\/p>\n
Then my uncle burst out laughing. And just like that, the whole room erupted. People were crying. Someone choked on a dinner roll.<\/p>\n
My aunt had to sit down because she was laughing so hard she got dizzy.<\/p>\n
Turns out Roman thought there was gonna be a \u201cdeep sea egg hunt\u201d because someone\u2014ahem, probably my brother<\/p>\n
\u2014jokingly told him the Easter Bunny was hiding eggs in the fish pond this year.<\/p>\n
And he took it seriously.<\/p>\n
But what we didn\u2019t expect was how his little \u201cscuba diving mission\u201d would unfold, or how it would change the whole mood of our gathering.<\/p>\n
Roman, with his oversized flippers slapping against the floor and the goggle straps digging into his little face,<\/p>\n
marched straight to the backyard like he was on a covert mission. His tiny legs moved with determination as he waddled past<\/p>\n
the adults, completely oblivious to the laughter that followed in his wake. I could hear him muttering under his breath,<\/p>\n
probably preparing himself for what he was sure was going to be the most important egg hunt of his young life.<\/p>\n
I followed him out, shaking my head but amused. \u201cRoman,\u201d I called, \u201cwhere do you think the fish eggs are hidden?\u201d<\/p>\n
He turned, face serious. \u201cIn the pond, of course. Duh.\u201d<\/p>\n
I smiled and nodded. \u201cAlright, buddy. Let\u2019s see what you find.\u201d I knew the pond was a bit of a stretch\u2014mostly filled with lily<\/p>\n
pads and some goldfish, not exactly a hot spot for Easter eggs, but Roman was nothing if not determined.<\/p>\n
We reached the pond, and Roman immediately dropped to his knees, peering into the water, as though expecting to spot some eggs<\/p>\n
glimmering beneath the surface. It was adorable, but it also made me think about how easy it was for him to be so sure of the world<\/p>\n
\u2014so confident that everything would turn out just as he imagined.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, Roman\u2019s face lit up. \u201cI found one!\u201d he shouted, pointing toward the water. \u201cIt\u2019s sparkling!\u201d<\/p>\n
I squinted and then laughed\u2014he had indeed spotted something. Not an Easter egg, of course, but a shiny stone resting on the bottom<\/p>\n
of the pond, reflecting the sunlight. Without hesitation, Roman reached in and tried to grab it. His little arms flailed in the water, trying to get hold of the stone.<\/p>\n
\u201cHold on, Roman!\u201d I called, rushing over. But just as I was about to help him, he yanked back, his face filled with triumph. In his hands<\/p>\n
was not just the shiny stone, but an old, worn key.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook! It\u2019s an egg key!\u201d Roman yelled, holding it up like he had just discovered a treasure chest.<\/p>\n
I blinked, a little confused but also intrigued. I had no idea what kind of key he was holding, but I wasn\u2019t about to burst his bubble.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, Roman, that\u2019s a good find. A real key to the secret egg treasure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roman beamed. \u201cI\u2019m gonna open the secret egg vault! I\u2019m gonna be the first one!\u201d<\/p>\n
At this point, I could see some of the other family members wandering out into the yard to join in on the fun.<\/p>\n
They\u2019d caught wind of Roman\u2019s \u201cscuba diving adventure,\u201d and now everyone was curious about what he had found.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Easter brunch was already in full swing\u2014ham in the oven, pastel eggs everywhere, and my grandma yelling at people to \u201cget out of her kitchen if you\u2019re… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30386,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance"],"yoast_head":"\n