Raising a boy

Soggy day in the northeast. The ducks are loving it!

I was definitely not going to post today since I have so much work to do, but my recent phone call from the big kid has led me to type away my frustration....here goes....

I am so happy that my son is able to enjoy his college experience while he works hard to secure a starting position on the team. Whether he starts or sits and plays out of the bullpen, I really don't care. He is living the dream of many boys and men. This is a one in a million opportunity. Therefore he must be grateful and thankful for all of his blessings. As such, besides baseball, he has been bestowed with good looks, a killer grin, great hair, intelligence, athleticism, and a good sense of humor. With the talents that he received while standing in line in heaven before he was born, he stepped out for a snack when God handed out common sense.

On to the phone call...."Mom, I did not do this on purpose..." Whenever a call begins with this phrase, I know that this is big...really big. With what seemed like a frightened voice, he continues: "OK, here is what I think happened...." Then he proceeds to tell me that he thinks that he either lost or someone stole his Visa card. The adjective and noun 'Visa card' stopped me cold and I started to perspire heavily. Not stopping to towel off, I patiently and calmly uttered: "Whaaaaaaat?!!!" Yeah...the Visa card, his card....technically my card is missing from his wallet. Gone...lost...stolen...MIA...

Never one to overreact, I asked him when was the last time that he saw the card. The answer was on Friday....Friday, three days ago...enough time to buy a yacht, fill it with gasoline and sail away to the Greek Islands and maybe buy one with (technically) my card. OY!

He continued to breathe heavily on the phone as I offered some quick wisdom...call your dad (yikes)..tell him what happened and to check online to see if someone is using it...then he can cancel the card. OK? "Yes, but I am going back to the field to look for it." Oh come on man....think about it....someone sees a credit card on the ground or in the locker room, are they going to pick it up and turn it in to the lost and found OR use it to buy their books for the semester? Use your head for more than grow hair! Dude!

I have lost many things in my life from earrings to rings to papers and books. But I have never lost a credit card. The biggest of my losses has been my mind since these kids turned into teenagers. Women with young kids think that they are crazy now...just wait, girls...the fun begins at age 13 and older....Just when you think that you are done raising them, something memorable like a lost Visa card or melted-in-the-dryer debit card emerge. And who can forget the new drivers and the trips to the repair shop? How about running out of gas after your teenager has used all of the gas in the tank? Here's another one....how about your teenager who thinks that he can handle an apartment at the age of 19 losing his credit card on the day he is supposed to pay the rent and will now pay a $50.00 late fee?

And so, these are the experiences that not only offer us lessons on what to do in life but also give parents gray hair. Sadly, the extra $50 will have to be used for the penalty as opposed to covering up the 12 new gray hairs sprung this morning...and so life goes on for BP mom and her crew....gotta love them....I know that I do...