Mark/MO
05-08-10, 15:19
The last few weeks have been somewhat sobering and thought provoking for me. My first born, my nearly 19 year old son is about to graduate high school. Yesterday we went to his Senior Awards assembly and watching him up there on the stage brought back a flood of memories; many good, a few not so good.
When he was conceived we’d been told that we couldn’t have children without my wife undergoing additional surgeries. His birth came prematurely and he spent weeks in a neo-natal unit 70 miles away. We were told there were the possibility of a number of serious health and potential mental problems, none of which ever really came about. We were blessed and he is today a healthy, smart, reasonably well adjusted kid. I look at him sometimes and wonder where the little boy went that wanted horsey rides, to play catch and go fishing.
Another “proud dad” moment for me was last month. After two plus years he earned his Distinguished Expert classification in smallbore 4 position rifle shooting. When he started shooting he noticed the plaque on the wall of our range that lists the names of all the people who earned this award, going back to the early 60’s. He told me he was going to get his name on that plaque and he stuck to it and did it.
I hear or see horror stories about a lot of kids and am very thankful. He’s grown into a good Christian young man. He plans to go to a local college this fall and has earned some scholarships along the way. He’s worked hard and his mom and I are incredibly proud of him.
When he was conceived we’d been told that we couldn’t have children without my wife undergoing additional surgeries. His birth came prematurely and he spent weeks in a neo-natal unit 70 miles away. We were told there were the possibility of a number of serious health and potential mental problems, none of which ever really came about. We were blessed and he is today a healthy, smart, reasonably well adjusted kid. I look at him sometimes and wonder where the little boy went that wanted horsey rides, to play catch and go fishing.
Another “proud dad” moment for me was last month. After two plus years he earned his Distinguished Expert classification in smallbore 4 position rifle shooting. When he started shooting he noticed the plaque on the wall of our range that lists the names of all the people who earned this award, going back to the early 60’s. He told me he was going to get his name on that plaque and he stuck to it and did it.
I hear or see horror stories about a lot of kids and am very thankful. He’s grown into a good Christian young man. He plans to go to a local college this fall and has earned some scholarships along the way. He’s worked hard and his mom and I are incredibly proud of him.