Proud Mama Moment

My son just got back from a scout camping trip with his Boy Scout Troop. This was his first camping trip with this troop since we moved here.

I spotted him climbing out of one of the vehicles and walked over to chat about the trip. The man who had been driving the truck from which Ben had just emerged came over to meet me. He said, "Your son is just great! He climbed in the truck, introduced himself to everyone, and got all the boys playing games on the way there. He's really a fine example of a scout!" My first reaction was to say, "No, this is my son right here.....I don't know which boy you are talking about." Actually I didn't say that, I managed to stop the words before they leaped out of my mouth. I did give Ben a "look" and he gave me a huge cheese eating grin. I wanted to tell that scout master that Ben's favorite game to play with his sisters is "Let's See How Much I Can Aggravate You Before You Scream" but I'm assuming that's not the one he played with the scouts on the trip.

I'll admit, he's one of the most social kids I've ever known. As much as we have moved, I guess he has learned to just waltz into a group and make friends with no inhibitions. I still can't do that. When we moved to Virginia (two years ago), he was elected Patrol Leader over the entire Husky Patrol only three months after we arrived. I've often wondered if there were other boys in the troop who had been planning on being patrol leader some day only to have this new guy come in take over. But he is just one of those people everyone seems to just like. He's got a great sense of humor and I think that goes far in winning people over. Even I can't stay mad at him for long because when someone makes you laugh it's hard to keep fussing. If I could just figure out how to get him to quit trying to boss his sisters around...................Ah well, I'm sure if I could find a cure for that I'd be richer than Bill Gates!

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