Position In The Universe...

Danielle was a little nervous about going away, and her Dad's solution was to dole out his unique wisdom...
 

Danielle got a scholarship to a really cool 3 week summer camp in New York. Her father and I took her to the place she was to catch her ride. She was very excited and didn't have a single problem with parental separation. (I, on the other hand, have not taken the separation with the same aplomb. I am getting a taste of how it will be in the very near future as our kids start heading off to college.)

The Husband was his usual self...

We got out of the van and hauled the luggage out to the sidewalk where about six other kids and their families waited for the transportation to arrive.

Husband, "Well, have a good time. I need to go get a cup of coffee. Love you. Bye."

Danielle, "What? I'm not more important than your coffee?"

Husband, "We all have our priorities and I always say you should know your position in the universe."

Danielle, "I should be number 1. Just where am I on your list of priorities?"

Husband, "Well, coffee is number 1. I guess you could be number 2 but I am not sure about that. Let me think about it for a while and I'll get back to you."

Me, "What about bacon? How come that's not high on your list?"

Husband, "Because the list is written on bacon." (my husband is having a love affair with his bacon)

Danielle and I just rolled our eyes.

Yes, it was comforting to me that the family dynamics do not change much as we get older.

Luckily our daughter has been able to have email communication where she is at. I told Danielle that I had sent her a care package.

Yesterday I received a letter from camp...

Mom,

Package, did you say? A package for moi? You shouldn't have! (ok, yeah, you should have. Manners are the epitome of humanity...I think?) When do you think it should get here?

This is my (almost - a couple weeks shy) 15 year old daughter writing. I'm thinking I should brace myself for the future...

QOTD: "Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves. It is up to us. It's been said that astronomy is a humbling, and, I might add, a character-building experience. To my mind, there is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly and compassionately with one another and to preserve and cherish that pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known." Carl Sagan (1934-1996) American Astronomer and Popular Science Writer