Paradise Preoccupied

Like many dads, Mark has always assumed that he and his son are destined to pal around, to do guy things, to hang out together in that father/son way that, although it doesn’t include tossing a baseball back and forth in the back yard here … there being no baseballs and Mark not having a clue how to pitch one if it suddenly dropped out of the sky … is a familiar theme all over the world.

Mark was thirty-six when Sam came home, so not nearly as deserving of the older parent tiara as I was at the time, but still no spring chicken. He’d had a long time to observe other dad/kid relationships and decide what he’d like, and what he could take a pass on. Most of his visions of father-son-ing it at that stage involved fish in one way or another, with visions of quiet hours passed side-by-side in his little boat, then more time together as great meals would be prepared from the bounty they would haul home.

To a certain extent, that does happen. Sam enjoys fishing … although he wants to do it in the lagoon … and he loves bobbing around in the sea with Dad. He’s also big on adventures, and Dad is almost as much fun on those as Gay is.

For the most part, however, Mark’s interests are not Sam’s. He has no interest in going out in the boat, can only feign interest in cooking for short spurts, and would rather sit and draw for hours than hammer and saw and that sort of manly stuff that keeps Mark happily under the house and covered in sawdust for much of any given weekend.

It could easily be said that Sam is more like me than like his dad.

Cj, on the other hand … well, she’s a girl after her father’s heart. Peas in a pod, they are. Both have the calm temperament of those who will always choose smiling over frowning and acquiescence over argument. Nothing sounds like more fun to the two of them than mucking about in the wood shavings or spending ages in the kitchen together chopping, stirring, tasting.

And that’s another thing they share … they LOVE their food! Sam’s always been a good eater, but even his willingness to try anything didn’t prepare us for Cj’s total relish of anything … relish or no.

Yep. She’s just like her father is so many ways.

Now, if I can keep her thinking that washing dishes is a hoot and a half …

The shot is Cj and Mark having some father/daughter moments in the kitchen.