not made to be a crumb

Dear boys.

We drove to a nearby metro park today, to feel the warmth of the sun in winter. There's a word for that, one I didn't know until recently: apricity. It's fun to learn new words when you're in your forties. It's also nice to have time to take a family walk without frigid temperatures.
It was a meandering endeavor, and we stumbled upon treasures from bizarre to boring: a deer leg, a duck call, a laundry basket and a toothbrush and an old tennis shoe. We talked about moons around Jupiter and water on Mars, about financial literacy skills and the balloon from China, and we laughed and laughed about I don't even know what.

I want you three to recognize propaganda and to invest wisely and to chat easily about current events. And to laugh and laugh. I want you to know that it may be important to find people who are able to infuse a mundane activity with joy. It may actually be the most ironclad indicator of whether you want to spend time with those folks, whether you want to spend your life with that person. That, and if they like to learn new words with you.