no say about it

Last week my youngest son Ryan (17) went on a trip to Florida with his youth group, a normal thing, to be sure. Except that it was very not normal, for me, the Dad. Up until June I had been not only Ryan’s dad, but also his youth “pastor” too. So seeing him go was different. All three of my kids had been involved at a high level in my youth ministries over the years, and I have been always grateful for that. My kids, their friends and I, spent a lot of time together all over the North American continent, on trips and retreats and vacations, always together, and most of the time my very patient wife, Connie, came with us. All of us adventuring through this crazy thing called life, together.
This past week I really missed the boy.
It all reminded me of the song “The Cats In The Cradle” as the situation shifted on the Dad in that song from the one being away, to the one being left behind.
I looked out my front window on one of the days that Ryan was gone, realizing more and more that my life is changing rapidly and I have no say about it. Gray hair replaces the black. Weight hangs on. Eyes growing weak. Kids grow up and leave the nest.
It all makes me want to be a better son and a better father.