It’s a Thing!

I pick Noah up from school every day at 2:45 pm, except on Friday, then it’s 1:30 pm. I customarily ask him how his day was. Today I asked him, and he said, “OK, except for one thing”. “Oh, what’s that?”, I asked. He paused for a few seconds and then said that he didn’t want to talk about it. I let it go then because that is not an abnormal response for him, also, somethings he will talk about more comfortably with mom than me, and I knew that she would be asking the same question when she got home from work.

About an hour later she called from work. First question out of her mouth was, “How was Noah’s day?” So I told her what he said. She replied with, “I wonder if it has anything to do with yesterdays issue.” “What was yesterdays issue?” I asked. “He got pantsed.”  “What?!!” I was floored. (I’m thinking, why wasn’t I told, I’m only the father.) So, mom tells me what happened. In the end Noah didn’t want her to say anything to the school because the boys involved were, “My friends”, and he didn’t want them to get into trouble, and besides, Noah said, “They were just fooling around and having fun.”

So sad, Noah is so desperate for friends that he would think that these guys were just being “friendly”.

When Holli got home she went to Noah and ask him how his day was. A short conversation revealed that he had been pantsed again. It was time to take action. Holli contacted the school through his teacher and the principal, informing them what had happened and demanding answers and resolution. She was told that they would look into it and informed her that “pantsing had become a thing on campus”.

Meanwhile Holli tried to explain to Noah that these guys were not his friends, and that pantsing is not a sign of friendliness.

Written April 2025

Published in: Uncategorized on September 14, 2025 at 5:31 PM  Leave a Comment  
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Coming of Age

Noah turned thirteen last Saturday, May the seventeenth. He woke me up at around 6 am, calling out my name, “Dad”. I got up and went to his room, just down the hallway. I poked my head in his open door, “Yes Noah, what do you need?” “I’m a teen-ager.” he said, still half asleep, yet as jubilant as he could muster. So excited, this was a day he had waited for a long time. I had no idea just how important this day was to him. Noah thinks about many things, but he doesn’t share those thoughts readily. Every now and then something comes out of his mouth and it just kind of throws me back at how obviously he had been giving it a lot of thought. Turning thirteen was one of those things. Next thing he said was, “Can I open my presents now?” I had to tell him that he had to wait for mom to get up first, and that wouldn’t be for a while.

It was a big day for Noah, a big, outdoor party with lots of friends, a game truck, Nerf Gun battles, food and drinks, and all the presents that he had hoped for. God was kind as well, the forecast was for rain all day, but it hardly rained through out the day. Afterwards mom took him to a gathering at the Taekwondo headquarters for more games with friends, a play date event pre-scheduled for that day. When she got into the car to take him to the Taekwondo event Noah went straight to the passenger side of the front seat of the car. He was thirteen now and could legally ride in the front seat. Noah had obviously given it a lot of thought and was determined to exerciser that right. Not even the law could stop him from being a teenager. It was weird because he never seemed to talk much about it, but there was no hesitancy in the way he went directly to the front seat.

It is so strange to have him up front, but so cool at the same time. Welcome to the coming-of-age Noah. You’re growing up so very fast.

We love you.

Written May 17, 2025

Published in: Uncategorized on August 23, 2025 at 10:45 AM  Leave a Comment  
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