A fine moment indeed

The evening of the first full day of my parent's visit we took them to the Desert Botanical Gardens, "Las Noches de las Luminarias". In addition to garden pathways lined with thousands of hand lit luminaries the event features a variety of southwestern musical performers, including the cowboy fiddler pictured here, Ron Privett.

I would not have known, until we happened upon this performance, that my parents share an appreciation for folk-country music. I could have guessed Kenny, my step-dad, was a fan having observed him watching country-westerns during our childhood, but I would not have thought the same for my mom.

What I learned is she grew up watching Roy Rogers on TV and was a fan of several other shows in that genre. She reminisced fondly after the performance about having a crush on this-or-that western TV star and shared a childhood story of her delight in seeing a live show during a family vacation. What I love about the pictures above is I can see that same happiness in the lines of her face as she watches the fiddler.

Kenny also seemed to enjoy the performance, smiling and nodding when the fiddler would strike up one of Kenny's favorite songs. Kenny considers himself a bit of a history-buff, especially on wildwest Americana, and it appeared Kenny took special interest when the fiddler would talk about the origin of each of the songs he played. I am happy we found something that brought a smile to each of my parent's faces.

I have to thank Beth for helping to make this moment happen; she purchased the tickets for the event months ago. To be honest, I was a little unsure my parents would want to traipse through the gardens in the first 24 hours of their visit. But, as often happens Beth was right, it was a wonderful evening and my parents had a wonderful time.

In fact, there were lots of great moments. We spent the better part of eight days together, much longer than I have spent with them since high school. Almost every day we hopped in the car for trips as close as downtown Chandler and as far away as the Grand Canyon. We went places I had not even been before and I hope my parents enjoyed seeing so much of the state Beth and I now call home.

However, as you can probably imagine, there was also some tension. It was bound to occur, given all the time we spent together. As Beth and I are prone to do, we asked them a lot of questions, some of which I think crossed their personal boundaries. Also, Beth and I are pretty frank in our opinions and are not afraid to tell others what we think; a style to which my parents are not accustomed. But, we worked through the disagreements that arose and I hope my parents left feeling like they had an enjoyable and relaxing vacation.

There were many things I learned about my parents during their visit here, some simple, some profound. I also learned more about my childhood, filling in the gaps of my memory by asking lots of questions regarding my life from pre-school through fifth grade.

For better or worse though, what I think happened is my parents, and Beth and I, got to know each other as adults. Thanks to their visit I know more about my parents than I ever have before. I have a deeper appreciation for who they are, what makes them who they are and the role they played in making me who I am. And despite the differences in how we see the world, I love, respect and appreciate both my mom and Kenny. I am happy they came and hope they enjoyed their visit.

Each of us chooses how we see the world and how we remember the past; I will remember their time here fondly. When I look back on their visit I will remember the fine sweet moment of them sitting, smiling and nodding, listening to the cowboy fiddler.