Skip to main content

The last sock

This morning, while getting ready for work, I discovered a lone, Scout Sock in my drawer. Yesterday, while in a meeting at work, I received a phone call from my oldest son, the Eagle Scout. He doesn't usually call me at work so I stepped out of the room and answered. He was calling to ask me where my solar charger was and to tell me that he was taking all of my Scout Socks. He was packing for the National Jamboree and he was doing me the courtesy of telling me where my stuff went before I just discovered that it was gone. This is a running joke in our house. I buy some gear, and it is usually only a matter of time before it becomes his gear, even if he already has some of his own. Even socks are not exempt.

That should really be the end of the story, but it got me thinking about how proud I am of him and all that he has accomplished. He's off to help staff the zip lines at Jamboree, but he made his own travel arrangements, helped his friends with theirs, and got himself to the other side of the country. It will be his fourth such solo trip to that camp, and I am certain that he will get himself around, and back home again, just fine. He even did a bunch of work to earn spending money. He is making this journey on his own because he can. We are only a phone call away and ready to lend aid if needed, but I doubt that he will need it. I only have another year with Alex before he goes off to college. I will probably be a wreck, but I think that he is ready.

I finished getting ready for work and went out to the living room to get my youngest son so I could drop him off at his school. Yesterday, I told him that his brother was leaving for camp, and Theo said that he wanted to go, too, because he wanted to be a Scout. I told him that he couldn't go with brother this time, but that he would have all of his own adventures and that he would have a lot of fun. He was happy with that answer. This morning I looked at him and noticed that his knees were still all dirty from playing outside yesterday. I took him into the bathroom and did the best job that I could to scrub off a layer of dirt, but I had to be careful because his legs are all covered with bruises. He and his buddies at daycare play hard all day so Theo is frequently bruised and dirty, but very happy - just like his big brother was at that age.

They call Boy Scouts a youth program and it is, but as a parent, I have gotten so much out of it, too.  I have loved all of my adventures with Alex and I can't wait to take that journey with Theo. I am sure that one day I will receive another call letting me know that he will be taking all of my socks, too, and I will be just as proud.
Labels:

Comments

D.L. Holman said…
Way to go, Dad! I know how proud you are of your boys...as you should be. You're raising fine young men, and these teachings will be passed along to their children. This is indeed how we "live forever." :)
July 14, 2017 at 10:29 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reducing CO2 in your home the nerd way

For Christmas my wife gave me a Netatmo weather station because I am a home weather station nerd. The Netatmo is very cool, but it has an unexpected feature: it measures indoor Carbon Dioxide (CO2) levels. As soon as I set it up, the Netatmo began to alert that our indoor CO2 was at an unsafe level. The notes said that outdoor CO2 is usually around 400 ppm, and numbers above 1500 ppm could be unhealthy. On that first day, my house was at around 1300 ppm. Prior to that, I never gave indoor CO2 levels a thought. I began to do some research and discovered high levels of CO2 can cause symptoms such as fatigue, headache, breathing difficulties, strained eyes and itchy skin.  My family does have all of these issues, especially on the weekends when we are home all day, but I never connected that to indoor air quality. Previously, I installed a Nest thermostat . The Nest is very smart and saves energy by learning your habits and programming itself. Unfortunately, it is so efficient, that t
Post a Comment
Read more

Rooftop Playgrounds

This week I have had some meetings in a tall building in downtown Seattle, and when I took a moment to look around and enjoy the view I have noticed playgrounds on rooftops. I saw this daycare playground: and this playground on top of a school: I think that this is a really cool use of space. A friend that grew up in NYC said that her school had a rooftop playground, too. The delinquent in me wonders how many toys and balls go over the side, but I bet the teachers are pretty strict about that. Downtown Seattle has always seemed a little unfriendly towards kids and it is neat to see spaces being carved out.
Post a Comment
Read more

Dutch Oven Balsamic Chicken Recipe

This is a family favorite that is easy to make. It smells so great right from the start, that the first time I made it, my youngest son walked in the house while I was cooking and yelled, "Daddy! Make that one again!" It started life as a recipe on Delish .com, and I have cooked it several times, making small changes, to make it slightly less pretentious, and to work out issues with the directions. I also doubled the recipe so we end with a few leftovers for lunches. Ingredients  1 c. balsamic vinegar 1/4 c honey 3 tbsp. whole-grain mustard 6 cloves garlic, minced Salt Freshly ground black pepper 8 bone-in, skin on, chicken thighs 4 c. baby red, potatoes - or Brussels sprouts (or both) cut in 8ths (12oz bag) 2 Tbsp. Herbs de Provence 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil to cook the chicken Preparation Marinade In a large bowl, combine balsamic vinegar, honey, mustard, 1 Tbs Herbs de Provence, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Whisk until combined.
Post a Comment
Read more