'GO MAKE SOME MEMORIES WITH A KID'

          A sunny summer day; a good-looking All-American boy, his light-colored hair a comfortable mess; wearing only a pair of board shorts and a big smile; he sits on the end of a well-used kayak, with a bag of FUNYUNS in his hands and a bottle of Orange GATORADE on the ground between his bare feet; a fishing rod lies in the boat behind him.

          I love this pic, partly 'cause it’s of my 11-year-old grandson and partly because it speaks to me of summers past, spent as a young boy, shirtless and barefoot, tanned brown as a li'l Indian; a hand-me-down ZEBCO fishin' rod, grasshoppers and earthworms, and them ol’ red and white plastic bobbers; fishin' the nearby creeks and local farm ponds with my friends. I also recall that we, too, enjoyed the same snacks; although for my generation, the GATORADE was the original Lemon-Lime flavor instead of Orange.

          The day I snapped this pic, we were floatin' a 3 1/2-mile stretch of the Conasauga River, up in Polk County, Tennessee. It was his first time on a 'yak by himself. In no time, he's sayin' "Hey, Paw", and I turn to find him standin' up on it, paddlin' along with nary a care in the world. That day, he learned to fish a new lure... a swirly-tailed jig, while I got to hear all about his recent trip aboard a cruise ship to St. Thomas, San Juan, and the Bahamas. Smart beyond belief, he can comprehend an amazin' amount of things on an adult's level and is constantly learnin'; yet, he's still an 11-year-old boy, and keeps me in stitches with some of the things he can come up with. And best of all is how I feel after spendin' the day with him. Normally, I'm exhausted when I get off the river, havin' paddled all day in the hot sun.... but not when I'm with this young'un. Yeah, the tired muscles are still there, but time shared with him actually recharges my spirit.

          My daughter says that he "has the best time with me", and that he's "blessed to have a Paw like me". Well.... I don't know about all that.... but I can tell you that that boy means the world to me. He is, without a doubt, my 'best-est bud'. Heck, at times, I think I learn as much from him as he does from me. If nothin' else, though, he helps keep me young.... or at least, rememberin' when I was. LOL

          Just a bit of friendly advice, people.... take a kid fishin', play dress-up or Barbies, or just go skip rocks across a creek or pond; it makes no matter. Just go make some memories with a kid, spend time listenin' to 'em as much as, if not more than, you do talkin' to 'em. I guarantee you'll not regret it, and they.... will never forget it.