Dazzling Anew

We were on the car en route to school, trying to outsmart the traffic with navigation apps, but we do so with more efficacy through our stories and conversation about Solar Powered Super Heroes.

Digital Art by I.

Where would you like to go on vacation? I asked him as a segue to one of the stories we were telling. His face turned serious, squinting eyes and deeper voice, trying to mimic a superhero's with a karate-chop gesture on his hand he responded: "Rebirth of the Golden Phoenix." Golden Phoenix was the name of the hotel we stayed at two months ago to celebrate New Year's.

Earlier today, he was spoke with a pseudo British accent while he drew dinosaurs with a C3PO pencil topper. It's just like that Scottish guy, he says, referring to the host of a BBC documentary on How to Grow a Planet. We played our maps game, and he was first to find Libya. He knew the countries and continents like the back of his hand. The sponge-like mind of a five year old beats me.

He has developed a fondness for David Bowie, and says he gets relaxed by piano music. In the next couple of days we'll listen to more Chet Baker. This summer, we'll start uploading videos on his YouTube channel, named after a pre-colonial burial jar (his preference). I'll also take him to another round of swimming lessons.

Except for when he does his digital drawings, D. and I really just wish he'd spend less time with the Ipad. He's also underweight and below the average height of his age.

Most parents think that their children are geniuses. In no way do we put this pressure on him, or expect him to be the next Aaron Swartz or Jose Mujica. While he never cases to amaze, we tried not to mold his mind into thinking that he is smarter than others. But I did proactively warn him about the dangers of corporate greed. Most of the villains in the games we role-play are from evil corporations.

Now is the only time when we can still go hand-in-hand in expanding his consciousness and getting acquainted with this world. Very soon, he'll be ignoring us an he'll want to be on his own.

There are some things I will never be able to tell you when you're a teenager or when you're a grown man. So there's never a better time to say it: let's never grow apart, anak. I imagine myself in the future, with this in mind, without breaking the silence. Fathers are like that.

Love takes on different shapes and sizes, but it's certainly infinite.

V.'s coming along really soon. We all get to do it in a brand new playing field. V., beloved V. Lovingly all over again.