The Road Goes Ever On and On

This is a photo of my friends Aaron and Noah with their little sister Bianca (who is now 15 months old).  I don't know why it touched me so.  I mean, I know that these boys love their little sister.  But there is something about the way they are guiding her steps that just made this photo special to me.

It reminds me of the poem from the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.  You may remember it:

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

These little ones grow up so fast, and who knows where their paths will lead at the end of the day?  

God bless those little feet.