My neighbors Parker and Patty are always telling me how proud they are to be a part of Port O’Connor, Texas. They say it is a great community and so friendly. This summer their teenage grandson came to stay with them. What an experience! Their youngest is almost 40, so it has been a long time since they had a 17 year old boy around full time. Still their grandson stayed more than 2 months and both the he and his grandparents learned some real important lessons.

Teenagers? They can really eat! Just ask Parker. He no more than got the dishes washed and the boy wanted more. Teens apparently require cell monitoring or charging or something, because the grandson almost hyperventilated when Patty told him the cell tower was having some trouble and he might not have ‘full ‘ service some of the time. Now fishing laundry is smelly, but teenage boys make mountains of laundry that smells worse than any fishing laundry ever thought about smelling, even after two showers a day. City bred teenagers have confused wants with needs according to Parker… they ‘need’ fancy coffee , they ‘need’ free wifi, they ‘need’ multiple trips to the fast food and convenience stores to keep the bottom of their backpacks fully stocked, they ‘need’ video game time and mall time, etc.

Thankfully, Parker and Patty report that the grandson did survive without these decidedly urgent and reportedly mandatory items, and even found some new likes and tried some new things. The big city grandson worked his first real job, caught his first big red, first trout, first shark, saw his first monster billfish, learned to clean and fillet fish, developed cooking skills and grilling abilities that will serve him well, shopped and cleaned for himself and sewed on a button. The grandson became quite proficient at setting an alarm clock and even a back up alarm clock for work, fishing and other things that mattered to him. He gained knowledge of the old fashioned beliefs of work before play, jobs worth doing are worth doing well, everyone helps and it goes easier, tithe and save your money first, respect is earned and other grandparent kinds of ideas and ideals.

Most wonderful of all is the interpersonal change in the teenager. He greeted the post office guy when he picked up the mail, thanked the checker at the counter when he paid, talked to most of the senior citizens and the visitors at church on Sunday, spoke to the neighbors when he was out with the dog one recent afternoon, returned the weekender trashcans to their yards last week without being asked and even watered and mowed for the guy the next block over when he was called out of town. The teenage grandson, city born and bred, by his own admission does not know one service person in his usual haunts or one individual in his neighborhood, never speaks to casual passersby, and often races through the paces of life without even speaking let alone saying thank you or making conversation. He returns to finish his senior year, but Parker and Patty know he returns more of a man than a boy having earned and saved his own money and learned some valuable and life altering lessons that will serve him well.

Port O’Connor knows the value of connections and courtesy. I Hope you are making those connections in your day and in your life as well. Patty and Parker say they are glad to see their grandchildren come, happy that they grow and glad to see them go. Most of us will be glad for school to start, Labor Day to pass and life to settle into normal routine once again in our little town. Patty and Parker sure will be glad.