The Merry Month of May

I’m used to the security light outside shining into my window, but last night it was so dark I thought at first that the light was out. I was mistaken. The trees have leafed out so much our window is now in their shade.

GETTING READY TO FLY.The fact that Jenna now has her driver’s license really hit home with me the other day. We had borrowed Mom’s car and Jenna and I were returning it. Jenna was driving the car and I was behind her in the truck  We were rounding the curve at the Roy Cole Road intersection when my mind caught up to what was going on. My thought stream went something like this...

In surprise, “Hey, that’s my daughter driving that car up there!”

In anxiety, “She’s driving that thing all by herself!”

And finally the voice of calm reason and reassurance, “And she doing a really good job too!”

Another thing that really struck me happened last Friday. Jenna got to drive to school because she participated in a job shadowing opportunity at NorthCrest Medical Center. She was to report directly to the hospital by 8:30 and got to tag along with a nurse for about three hours. She missed seeing a birth but did get to see a circumcision while there. (I told her I’d have passed out on that one.) When that was over she had a little time to grab lunch before she had to report to the one class she takes at Springfield High School.

Jenna had opted to pack her lunch rather than eat out (she’s putting all her money toward going to Haiti) so she and I had a lunch date. She came by the office and picked me up and we drove over to Garner Street Park to eat. We had a good time talking and even reminisced about the birthday party she had at that park when she turned five. (This was the party with the indestructible piñata.)

Jenna dropped me off at the office and as she drove off it dawned on me that the time truly is short. She’s applying for an internship at NorthCrest this summer to have more exposure to the career she plans to pursue. And in just two short years her high school career will be over. She’s not a little girl any more, but she’s a young woman I’m really proud of.

MAN YOUR BATTLESHIPS! The boys (and us by extension) have had a busy two weeks with Scouts. For one thing, they put in some time helping a fellow Scout on his Eagle Scout project. On top of that, the competition for the Spring Camporee required the troop to make cardboard boats. Our troop built two boats, a canoe that carried three boys and a barge that carried eight. This project required several work nights so we were back and forth to one guy’s shop quite a bit.

A funny thing happened one day on one of these trips to work on the boats. We were on a back road when we were meeting a car and an adult turkey hen was standing right on the shoulder of the road. I slowed down to 25 or 30 mph, but right when we got to the turkey she took off and flew over the truck rather than turn and run away from the road. She was so close to hitting the windshield that Ben was already diving for cover. Her wing grazed the truck as we passed and she must have hit the antenna because it is bent just a little (that had to hurt). The boys also noticed a fox in the ditch that must have been stalking the bird. If she’d have just been a little slower I might have had fresh turkey for dinner!

Back to the boats, our troop decorated theirs as naval vessels. Other troops had Viking ships and pirate ships. The camporee was held at Latimer reservation near Fall Creek Falls this past weekend. Our troop won first place for speed, and third for aesthetics. I didn’t get to go with the boys, but they came back sunburned, smelling like smoke, and telling about good times.

IMPROVEMENT. Mom is continuing to get better. She’s not driving, but we are getting her out a lot. She hasn’t missed a church service or hair appointment and the church service weekend before last was held at Kilgore Park.

Joe