I am no longer the mother of teenagers. Today my younger son turns twenty, and I am astounded at how fast that happened. It seems only yesterday that the sky turned black, the thunder and lightning shook the hospital, and I turned to my husband and said, "I hope the lady in the next room is having the Anti-Christ and it's not us". Well, it wasn't, because there has never been a more delightful kid than this one. He is brilliant and sensitive, nerdy and funny. Most of all he is kind.
We've been away for a few days for what I hope is not our last, but is probably one of our last getaways as a family before people start careers and families and all that. To have the opportunity to listen to some of the ideas that run through his head at top speed is both dizzying and wonderful. The world fascinates him and he takes it apart piece by piece and examines it from every angle, coming away with a sense of awe at the mysteries of the universe. This is nothing new. At the age of four every sentence started with either, "You know what?" or "Can I tell you something?" I learn something every time I talk to him.
He's not big on words. He is, however, the first one to put an arm around my shoulders when he senses that I'm having a tough day. He makes me a cup of tea. There are a million layers to him, and I feel as though I've only scratched the surface. He is deep and complicated and keeps many things to himself. I suspect I'll never understand him completely, but I am always amazed and impressed by him, and his presence makes me smile.
He's heading back to his junior year of college next week. His big brother leaves on Saturday of this week. The house will echo. My curiosity at how this all turns out takes some of the sting out of the emptiness for me. These guys are something else, and if I never did one other thing I have raised the average of the universe by setting them loose on the world. Happy Birthday, Sweetheart.
We've been away for a few days for what I hope is not our last, but is probably one of our last getaways as a family before people start careers and families and all that. To have the opportunity to listen to some of the ideas that run through his head at top speed is both dizzying and wonderful. The world fascinates him and he takes it apart piece by piece and examines it from every angle, coming away with a sense of awe at the mysteries of the universe. This is nothing new. At the age of four every sentence started with either, "You know what?" or "Can I tell you something?" I learn something every time I talk to him.
He's not big on words. He is, however, the first one to put an arm around my shoulders when he senses that I'm having a tough day. He makes me a cup of tea. There are a million layers to him, and I feel as though I've only scratched the surface. He is deep and complicated and keeps many things to himself. I suspect I'll never understand him completely, but I am always amazed and impressed by him, and his presence makes me smile.
He's heading back to his junior year of college next week. His big brother leaves on Saturday of this week. The house will echo. My curiosity at how this all turns out takes some of the sting out of the emptiness for me. These guys are something else, and if I never did one other thing I have raised the average of the universe by setting them loose on the world. Happy Birthday, Sweetheart.
You are one of a kind! :)
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