Friday Night Lights

Last Friday night was one of those nights that will go down as one of those special nights. It was the last "official" night of winter; however, the temperature outside suggested that spring was a few hours early. A crescent moon, hanging low in the western sky, was joined by a chorus of a million stars.

To add a little bit of our own atmosphere, we lit a fire in the fire pit and for a couple of hours, the flames danced to their own orchestra as the four of us just enjoyed being a family.

Daniel, in his 8 year-old splendor, was a treasure trove of questions and comments:

"Daddy, why don't we get to go to other planets."
"Daddy, does Mars have an ozone layer."
"Daddy, can I have a new telescope so I can see if people are on Mars"
"Daddy....I love you"

Jacob, who can be as wild as a buck when he wants to be, decided that he was going to play the snuggle bug role as he spent time in both my and his mother's arms, eventually falling victim to the sand man.

Katie and I just took advantage of an uninterrupted opportunity to talk about things that are going on...nothing important, just a husband and wife spending time navigating through life.

As the boys grow up, I know that our Friday nights are going to be replaced by sports, social activities, and other things that tend to fill our calendars....almost like the movie named Friday Night Lights that highlighted how a small Texas town lived for the excitement of a football game to cap off their week.

Years from now, when I think about my Friday Night Lights, my mind is going to drift back to a backyard in Tennessee and four individuals trying their best to be a family.