God Took Ryan and I For A Drive Yesterday

This past week, I was in Texas with my son getting him ready for school. Yesterday, we decided to take a drive out to Wharton, Tx where I grew up. I have not been back to Wharton since I left twenty two years ago. At first, I just wanted to go check out the places where I grew up for my own nostalgia trip. However, it turned into something else. It turned into an education for my son. He got to see where his mother and I grew up. On every turn, he was asking all kinds of questions. I could tell that he was somewhat surprised that I grew up out in a small farming area. I could tell that he was able to start connecting some of the dots in my life. I took him to all of my hangouts and drove him by all the places where my friends lived. We drove to where his mother grew up. There was a baseball field that his mother's family had built. Ryan didn't know that his mother was an awesome soft ball player. I on the other hand --- sucked.

We drove to my high school. He was absolutely shocked to see how small the school was. It was very surreal in that this place where I spent four years had not changed at all in twenty years. We peaked into some of the windows. We noticed that not even the interior had changed.





As we were going to all these places, all the memories I had just starting pouring out. It was like dumping an encyclopedia of my life. Ryan was listening. I could tell that he was soaking this information in.

Overall, this was probably one of the best days I've ever had with Ryan. It was moving in the sense that I had not returned to these locations since I left twenty years ago but more importantly was an opportunity for my son to experience his own roots. Walking around my own high school with my son who's in his last year of high school was a blessing. Perhaps, one day he will return with his children educating them on where his grandparents grew up. A right of passage I will never forget.

Now, I'm on my way back to Indiana. It's still painful knowing that when I return he won't be there but I also know that God took us out for a drive yesterday to help me and hopefully Ryan to get through this step in his life. For that, I'm grateful beyond words can describe.

A note about Ryan:

Ryan got a job at the first place he put an application at. He will be a cashier at Randall's supermarket. He starts training on Monday and is very excited. He and I went to his new school and it looks like a great school. Katy schools are among the highest rated in the state. He starts on August 27th. I'll keep you updated on his journey.