Monday, February 18, 2013

Watching the son

I used to watch my son on Thursdays. The nanny had him the first three days and then my wife picked up on Friday. But Thursdays were mine and we would go for walks or go up to the old school yard and throw dirt clods at each other. Sometimes we would sit in his spaceship bed that was like a small Star Wars tent. Sometimes we just went downtown and got a soda and some chips at the hardware store and sat outside on the bench. This was usually in the spring when it was getting nice out.

And one day this old guy walks by and grins at us. Then he looks at me.
You want to enjoy this he says gesturing to my son. It goes by quick.
And I smiled back thinking yeah whatever. I mean my son was like five or six and you always think it will last forever. And then all of a sudden it doesn't. My son would always ask where the sun went for the night and I would say it went to the other side of the world.
Then it comes back he said chomping on some chips.
Yeah then it comes back.

And then he was eleven years older. Bam. Just like that. And I'm busy all the time and I have two daughters who suck up a lot of time. And he's always hanging with his friends and coming in late and we see each other in passing. And next  year he is a senior and that's it. Off to college. And sometimes, on Thursdays, I think about those days where I watched my son. And the old guy who said it goes by fast. And you know what? He was right. Because eventually...the son doesn't come back.

www.billhazelgrove.com

Rocket Man...the American Dream upside down

No comments:

Post a Comment