Cool

“Does this look cool, Mom?”

I never thought I’d hear those words from my 13 year old. He’s going bike riding today with his Boy Scout troop and apparently, wanted to look “cool”. This came out of the mouth of the babe who once chastised me for spending too much time in the bathroom before church on a Sunday morning with, “Mom, you shouldn’t be so concerned about your outward appearance, because the LORD looks at the heart.”

Yes, he quotes scripture AT me. This wasn’t the first time either nor was it the last.

The 10 year old has taken great pains about matching clothing. He won’t wear something with jeans unless it is blue OR he has been assured AGAIN with “Yes, everything goes with jeans.” The 10 year old has definitive opinions about his hair. He wears hair gel. He even sent me hunting one time for colored hair gel because even at the delicate age of 8, he wanted gold shimmer in his hair. Just in case you have girls, trust me on this one, BOYS are also DIFFERENT. “Does this look cool, Mom?” is a question that was supposed to come from THIS child, not the older one.

When it was time to leave, the 13 year old hopped into the car in his affirmed “cool” attire and I casually asked him if he was wearing deoderant. No. “Did you brush your teeth?” No. Needless to say, I left the car running ....

How long does it take until he will care about hygiene, I wonder.

Will he ever ask, “Do I smell okay, Mom?” Will he ever question, “Do I have food stuck in my teeth, Mom?” Will he ever say, “Mom, I want to marry someone just like you because you are perfect.”

I can dream can’t I?

I now understand what my mother-in-law once said when she said she had been praying for me for years before she ever met me. How cool is that?