Four Leaf Clovers

First Memories and Four-Leaf Clovers

I don't know what your first memories are like, but mine are as clear as a reel playing in my head. Even before I could talk, I remember understanding what adults were saying. I’d sit quietly, listening to their conversations, absorbing everything but never feeling the need to respond. Maybe that’s why I’ve always been so quiet and introverted, more comfortable in my own thoughts than in the company of others.

I was a daydreamer, content with my own company, happy to lose myself in simple tasks. I didn’t need much external stimulation to feel fulfilled—just the space to think and a quiet corner to call my own. 

When I was six, life took a sudden, serious turn. My mom was in a terrible car accident that nearly cost her her life. I didn’t understand the full gravity of the situation at the time, and I wasn’t privy to all the details. My dad was running a summer camp for inner-city kids back then, and the accident happened while my mom was on her way to the camp. After the accident, she spent a long time in the hospital, and when she finally came back, she was bedridden, in traction, for what seemed like forever. We were at the camp during her recovery, and she stayed in a small cabin, unable to move much at all.

I spent most of my time by her side in that cabin, offering what little comfort a six-year-old could provide. When I wasn’t with her, I’d be outside in the grass, looking for four-leaf clovers to bring to her. It was a simple task, but one that I could lose myself in for hours. I’d sit there, daydreaming, my hands brushing through the grass, searching for that rare clover with four leaves. When I found one, it felt like striking gold—a tiny, magical gift for my mom.

So you see, I was easily contented, happy to be alone with my thoughts and a simple mission. Some might have mistaken me for being a slow child, but the truth was, I was pretty sharp. That sharpness would eventually earn me a reputation as the smart one in the family, but back then, I was just a quiet kid who found peace in daydreams and clover patches.