Story from my Father: A hidden advantage to a child on vacation

Danielle and I are going to be doing our first plane ride with Sienna this coming June. Certainly a seminal moment in any parent/family life. Which I was mentioning to my father on the phone last night.

I also mentioned that Sienna will remember NOTHING of the adventure. My father laughed before delving into a story about how he and my mother took my older brother Brian to Hawaii when he was 18 months old.

Since it was 1971 they actually took a series of small flights across the United States, staying at each place for a few days. They bounced their way all to Hawaii.

My father suggested I take Sienna to a beach-type place before sharing his wonderfully hidden fact about children. One that I sort of new, though not to such an extent.

Every morning my father took Brian to the beach while my mother slept in. Brian happily sat on the beach using his chubby hands to propel pieces of sand at passerbiers. People would laugh at the father/son combination. Stopping to chat about this amusing sight.

"You know who stopped the longest? Girls. They'd flock around and play with him. I didn't mind." He laughed one more time, "God, that was a good trip."

Parents. Always giving us advice on everything.

Wayne