It was my first day of kindergarten. My mom walked me into the strange room, filled with kids, and introduces me to the teacher. She smiled and took me over to see the class turtle. He was a cute little guy with red marks on the side of his neck. I don’t remember his name, but I thought he smiled at me. When I turned around, my mom was gone! I was trapped here with all of those strange kids.
There was a little blonde girl. I don’t remember her name, but she said I was her boyfriend. We held hands and played together. She was nice. She made me feel comfortable in my new world. I still have a thing for little blonde girls. Namely, Laura Gail. She’s my best friend now. She makes me feel comfortable wherever I am, too. She’s also very nice. Most of the time.
The other thing I remember is nap time. We all had our own little mat to lay down on during nap time. I remember sleeping well, and not wanting to get up when it was time. I’m still a big fan of naps, whenever I can get them.
When you’re small, your world is small. You play with your little toys, and you can make them do whatever you like. They can fly, run faster than lightning, or swim without coming up for air. Your heroes always save the day, and the bad guy is always defeated. Your world is whatever you want to make of it.
Growing up was the worst decision I ever made. Once you make it, though, there’s no turning back. All of the “grown up” things you want come with a price. You want to spend money on whatever you want. No parents telling you “you don’t need that”. So you get a job, and earn your own money. That’s all well and good, until you surround yourself with things you get to pay for on a daily, monthly, and yearly basis.
You want to stay up as late as you want and do whatever you want. No parent to say “you have to get up for school in the morning”. Now that you have a job, that’s not too easy to get away with. Sure, you can stay out all night if you want. In the morning, however, that job is still there, waiting. You can’t buy “what you want” without it, so here we go. Exhausted and tired, you learn to go to bed at a decent hour.
Chocolate cake at eleven o’clock at night? Heck, yeah! You can do that, too. Man, being a grown up is awesome! No parent to say “No. It’ll give you a tummy-ache in the morning.” You may get away with it for a few years, but eventually your metabolism no longer cooperates with your taste buds. Then you end up feeling tired, miserable, and sick at work the next day. Growing up. It’s a devilish thing.
I envy my daughter, Candice, and my grandson, Sammy. The former turns thirty-eight on the nineteenth, and the latter turns five on the eighteenth. They both still have the energy and imagination to play, to laugh and to do all of the things they love to the utmost. They’re still learning. They’re still in their own little worlds, just in different ways. I love when I get to play with both of them, and they let me into their world. I’m a certified member of the Old Man Club, but they still include me in their adventures, and I appreciate it. Watching your kids, and grandkids, learn, grow and have fun is one of the few benefits in growing up. They make me feel young again. They make growing up worth the price of admission.
Happy Birthday, Candice and Sammy! Dad, and Gramps, loves you!
One piece of advice from an Old Man: if anyone tries to lure you into a room full of strange kids, with the promise of meeting a turtle-run! It’s a trap!
God bless y’all!
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Rolling Stones 