Come on darkness!!!

"Mom, what do you think would happen if I showed up to the store completely naked?" "Well, you'd get some attention." 

"Aunt Man, a hero!" "Yes, Aunt Man is a hero." "Lochlan a hero." "Yes, Lochlan is a hero too." "Aunt Man ride ant." "Yes, and Lochlan rides a horse, even when he's scared." 

"Mom, can you imagine all the people that have looked at the stars, just like us and loved them and been inspired by them? I mean for thousands of years!" It's absolutely incredible to consider. 

"Mom, imagine if we weren't limited or bound by time... the things we would know and see and experience!" "Thank goodness we're limited by time... I wouldn't want to personally witness so much of the history of mankind." And I definitely know I'm not prepared to see the future and what it holds. The grandeur and the hardship would split me apart. I'll live it each day as it comes.

 "Mom, can I kick Madigan if he bites me?" "Big nope. 

"Mom, I think we need to laugh but we also need to cry." Truth. 

"Mom, will you get up with me at 1:00 AM and go sit underneath the stars with some hot tea? Just a date?" "Yep. Count me in." Between Lochlan and the baby horse, I'll prolly be awake anyway! 

"Mom, would you boat down the whole Mississippi River with me someday on my homemade raft?" "That may take some convincing... and a bathroom on the vessel." 

"Mom, I prayed tonight that God will take me home before you because I can't live without you beside me." "You can and will live some of this life without me beside you, but you will be given the strength when it is needed. You will be given what you need. Of that I'm sure." 

"Mom, the thing I wish for almost more than anything is a life where there are no goodbyes." "Welp, you're definitely my son." 

"Mom, do you think we could take a road trip for a couple of years just so that we can see everything together?" "Not sure how to make that happen, but perhaps we could start the journey incrementally?" 

"Mom, let's get our backpacks, put Lochlan on Devany and ride around the Peaks for AT LEAST one week." "Well, we need to think about water sources for us and for Devany, food for Devany, and a couple others 'minor' details before we get that trip in the books. But, yes, let's." 

I told Lochlan that we could not get in the hot tub until after dark. He dramatically raised his hands to the sky and yelled, "Come on Darkness!!!" I mean, I get it... 

"Mom, do you think Lochlan knows how much we love him?" "I think so." 

"Mom, you might have a tea problem." I don't know what you're talking about. 

"Mom, I touched the electric fence and I felt my brain cells rattle." "Well, what a unique opportunity!"

"Can we please focus, and have a long, quiet teatime together this morning?" "Great idea, but I'm not sure how successful we'll be at the quiet part since you are, after all, a member of this tea time experience." 

"Oh, to be a dog. I love their hearts and the way they see life." "Ah, the dog whisperer." 

"Sometimes it's so hard to choose love." Yes. And... we must.