Good Times

Sometimes I get the timing wrong as a parent. I try to plan something special and the kids are too young or too old or just not interested. In the meantime, I have spent money, allocated time, or simply built up an idea about how special it would be to share this Thing/Event with my kid.

For example, last winter I took my daughter to Denver and I took her to the Natural History Museum that I went to as a child. My favorite exhibit was the leaping prong horn. How did they do that? I would wonder. Well. The "magic" of the leaping prong horn was lost on my 9 year old.

"That's it?!" she said after I built up the exhibit and dragged her room to room looking for the prong horn.

"Well, yeah," I said.

Suddenly I felt stupid for once being fooled by a metal rod holding up a leaping stuffed animal.

Last night I loaded up the car with kids and fishing poles. I dropped the oldest off at the skating rink and then we drove to the reservoir which was recommended by another parent I know. I have not fished since I was a kid and I have never taken my kids fishing.

"Wow!" one kid said as we turned the corner and the lake became visible.

"Awesome! Where are we going to fish?"

They were almost overly excited and I worried that things were going to get out of hand quickly as their excitement caused fights or accidents or just anger on my part. But instead the excitement was perfect.

We walked out on a rock outcropping. They waited somewhat anxiously as I set everyone's poles up. The part of my memory that knows how to attach bobber, weight and hook came out of the grey folds. I reached in further and then I demonstrated a cast and then let them each give it a try. It only took a few tries before they were (carefully) casting. They avoided each others heads, faces and fishing lines. I was impressed.

The dog and I walked along the path around the lake and then came back towards the kids. The sun was setting over the reservoir and they were lit from behind. The effect was an orange sunset over a lake with kids blacklit in the foreground with fishing poles. It was Norman Rockwell-like without the cute drawings.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"Great!" they said.

The first fish - a bluegill - came soon after I sat down. The fisherman was literally jumping up and down and swinging his pole in excitement.

"I got one! I got my first fish!" screamed Frank's friend Nicky.

Mary and Frank put their fishing poles down and I came over to grab the line and keep the fish from hitting the ground. I held him up so the kids could see him clearly, and then, again using skills I thought I had forgotten, I firmly grasped the fish between my left thumb and forefinger and pulled the hook from his lip. I leaned forward and released him back into the lake.

The kids would not leave after that. We stayed until it was dark. I drove Frank's friend home and then took my kids to the grocery store near the skating rink. It was 9:45 and I figured we would just pick up a few things while we waited for Anna to be done skating at 10. Of course I ran into someone that I know. An occasional opposing counsel. He pulled his cart in behind mine at the grocery store. I suddenly felt very aware that we were filthy and smelled like a fishy lake and that I was at the grocery store with small children at 10pm.

"These are my kids Mary and Frank," I said. "We just got done fishing at Holmes Lake."

"Oh!" he said. "Good times!" He smiled at us kindly and I could see the parent in him remembering doing dirty stinky things with kids.

It was good times, I realized. I wasn't sure it would be, but it was.