CUL-DE-SAC

It was a Sunday afternoon when I was watching my kids. My wife was out-of-town, and I’d gotten the idea to take them to lunch at the Living Room, a trendy neighborhood coffee shop.

That’s when the arguments began. My kids didn’t want to go. I told them they’d watched enough TV and played enough video games and they needed to get out of the house.

The Living Room

Then I insisted we walk or bicycle to the coffee shop, since it was only a half mile away with no major streets between us and it. They hadn’t gotten any outdoor exercise that day.

My daughter threatened she wouldn’t go unless we took the car. I told her we’d go the way I said we’d go, dammit!

Once we got to the place and got some food things went better. And as we were leaving, a woman seated outside caught my eye then looked at my kids.

“You’ve got such a cool dad!” she said. “He takes you to the Living Room, which is the greatest place.”

My daughter stared ahead as she sat on her bike, taken aback by the woman’s bizarre pronouncements and not knowing what to say in response.

Then the woman looked at what I had under my arm. A skateboard.

“And he rode here with you on his skateboard? What a totally cool dad!! You guys are so lucky!”

I said thanks, a little sheepishly, then started on the way home. My kids lingered behind and may have exchanged a few words with her.

Life continued the rest of the day as usual. And I wondered whether and how my children will remember the day they were told they were lucky to have me as a dad.

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