More on boyhood

Nick and I were reluctant to add anything else to our fall schedule, what with ballet twice-a-week, church and swim on Sundays, Bible study on Tuesdays, nature class on Wednesdays plus all of the homework, violin practice and play dates in between.

But for our boy who doesn't get excited about many extracurricular opportunities, we were willing to make an exception. 

This week we joined Tiger Scouts. 

Calvin has had his eye on scouting for a while now.

 Every time we pass a makeshift bridge or shelter in the woods he says with serious reverence: "The scouts must have been here!"

Last summer, when I thought he was engrossed in Legos on my parents' living room floor, he was listening quietly to big-cousin Andy tell me about his week-long Boy Scout camp, capsizing a kayak in the lake and earning badges. It sounded to Calvin like great outdoor fun -- his favorite kind.

A few weeks ago at school, he found out about our local scout pack and heard a few friends were joining.

 He wanted to join, too. 

We told him about the meetings, the uniform and the responsibilities. Those requirements were fine, but he wasn't sure about giving up a Saturday every now and then for structured activities. 

Ultimately he said: "I want to be part of a team." 

How could we say no? 

Yesterday evening, he advised us that he'd better get to bed on time because he had his first Tiger Scouts outing the next morning -- a bike rodeo, followed by a ride across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

So he got the rest he needed, consumed a stack of papa's homemade apple pancakes plus a side of bacon and donned his favorite socks. After loading their bikes onto the wagon, they were off.

Nick was a Cub Scout years ago, so he knows what's ahead: rain-soaked camp-outs, circling the neighborhood with popcorn sales forms and late-night derby car fine-tuning. But I have a feeling this time around, doing those things with his own son (and perhaps a second) will bring material for some cool father-son memories.

And if it doesn't work out, they'll at the very least have had a terrific ride across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge together.