Last week, Alison and I joined our five year old son Cole on a tour of his new school. It’s hard to believe that beginning this August he’ll be attending kindergarten. It’s wonderful to see him develop into a “bigger boy”, but sometimes I wish I could just hit “pause” and remain in this time for a little while longer. I love our moments together whether it’s throwing the baseball in the yard, or even wearing our Spiderman gear pretending to chase the Green Goblin. He is our first and the one who bears my dad’s name within his own. He is Cole Edwin Banck, and he is my son. I often ask him to “be the leader” for his little brother, Heath, and he accepts that honor with great pride. He shows him the way and “little brother” duplicates every move, action, sound (good or bad), and repeats them as if he is a robot. Most of the time they are great buddies, but there are occasions when they relish the opportunity to get the other in trouble. They would seldom see one another in pre-school, but always knew their brother was just around the corner. But now Cole will be in a different building, on a separate street, and bringing homework home for the first time. I know he’s super excited to begin his new journey, but I’ll continue to remain on “pause” for the rest of the summer. My son’s age may be growing, and his life expanding, but these times with him will remain forever in my mind. I know some of you may be experiencing what I’m going through right now. So, I encourage you to embrace these moments and hit “pause” as well.

And for those of you who unfortunately have not had this luxury, or may have lacked involvement during these precious years, please find your children now wherever they may be, and let them know you love them oh so preciously…

It is never too late…