When I was a young man raising a family I always wondered why we couldn't do things in reverse. Work while you are young and save your money then have kids when you are older. I've waited quite some time but I have received an answer to this nagging question this week.
My youngest son and his much better half are in Hawaii this week so we have their three kids, the youngest being two. I haven't raised kids in 25 years (the kids left 15 years ago but they were zombiefied teen agers so that doesn't really count). The short story or moral if you prefer is that you'd simply forget where you put them. I've sat the 2 year old down a couple of times and then wondered what I did with her. Babies are amazingly like car keys or glasses in that respect. Easiest things in the world to misplace. Sometimes you can sniff them out. Other times you just have to keep looking. My son happened to call while I was in SAB (Search a Baby) mode. "You bet, things are going swell," I said. All the while looking for his kid. "Yeah, no trouble at all. Speak to her?" I got crossed up a bit at that point but fortunately my feeble ears picked up a young laugh that led me to her so my bacon was saved.
The point is, I think things are probably as they should be. Maybe HE got it right all along and I just didn't understand it. That happens a lot with me, by the way. That's how I learned to leave wasps alone. How I found out that fire was hot and why you should never run across ice. I seem to remember something about slipped wrenches and busted knuckles in there somewhere, too. I just hadn't figure out what the answer to the baby question was.
On an up note. I have decided that I am perfectly suited to hold a conversation with a 2 year old. They are loud, which I can hear. They don't use big words. They laugh even when what I say isn't funny and best of all they give out lots of kisses and hugs to an old man. Yeah, I think HE got right all along.
