Guys' Weekend Away

Daniel and Jude had their first father-son weekend away. I was devastated; Jude, apparently, was not. Daniel wanted to visit a friend in Dallas this past weekend, and he offered to take Jude along. Of course, Daniel is Jude's father who loves him, but Daniel is not mommy. I presumed this would pose a challenge for young Jude. After all, Jude and I have spent scarcely a day apart. I delivered Jude to Daniel in an inhospitable parking lot, where we had but a brief exchange before Daniel barreled off with Jude in an over sized pick-up truck. Numerous factors contributed to my trauma at seeing Jude off, not the least of which was the smiley little face which looked back at me as daddy spirited him away. I was crying--naturally, Jude should have been too. Such was not the case.

Daniel and Jude had a terrific weekend of father-son bonding, and while Jude has always smiled to see his daddy return from work, he now absolutely delights at the sight of Daniel. Imagine: 5:00, Daniel turns the key to unlock the front door. Jude's ears perk up, much akin to a shepherd's guard dog. He waits, still with anticipation. Daniel appears. Jude squeals, races toward the door in a frantic, hurried scoot (that's right, Jude does the Ella scoot). He throws his arms upwards, Daniel embraces him, and all is right with the world.

I assumed that when Daniel and Jude returned from their trip, Jude would be as happy to see me as I was to see him. Such was not the case. He smiled. He cuddled his head into Daniel, and not reluctantly came to me when I grabbed him. But he wasn't devastated by the trip. Not even remotely. In fact, just the opposite--he loved being alone with his daddy. And so, I let go of my own inklings of rejection in favor of something much more important--a strong bond between a father and his son, a son and his father. How blessed I am to be witness to this.

Great job Daniel, Jude. I love you guys!