Fashion statement
Riley, my 6-year-old son, joined Boy Scouts this year. Last night he received his first ranking (Bobcat). Admitttedly, he did not have to skin a deer or survive a weekend in the Bog Garden with only tree bark and his wits to pull him through.
Instead he had to learn the Cub Scout Promise, which deals with honesty, integrity and trustworthiness -- traits I hope he carries with him long after Boy Scouts.
Still, I wouldn't mind if he skinned something other than his knee. Maybe learn a few knots. Perhaps then he'd get the proper respect at home.
On the night of his first Den meeting, his mother urged him to go upstairs and put on his costume.
I gently corrected her: "It's not a costume, honey, it's a uniform."
It didn't help mattters when we were stopped outside by our neighbor's 5-year-old daughter, who saw Riley decked out in his uniform.
"Oh, Riley," she gushed. "I love your scarf!"
"This is not a scarf," he told her. "Right, dad?"
I nodded and told him I wasn't sure what it was called. But scarf? No way.
Is there a badge for fathers who don't have the heart to tell their sons that the scarf they're wearing is really a neckerchief?