star showers and a blog tour

It's almost two in the morning as I write this. Joel and I just came in from watching the skies and waiting for the Perseid Meteor Shower. We saw a number of meteors flash by...quick as an eyeblink. According to news reports the rain will be full blast between two a.m. and five in the morning, but we came in as it was getting quite fresh and it was pretty hard to ignore the yawns coming from my eldest son's direction.

Moments like these are so precious though. Here's a conversation and an overheard monologue:

Me: Keep your eyes on the sky and when you see a star, make a wish.

Joel: Can I make three wishes?

Me: Sure you can.

Joel: Okay... (whispery voice) I wish I could be a millionaire...oh wait...something better...I wish I could ... mumble, mumble...oh, that's impossible...then...I wish for a good life...yes, that's the wish...I wish to have a good life and to be able to buy another wagon for my train collection.

Listening to Joel's discussion with himself, and watching the night sky, I had to think of Mary De Muth, and the blog tour for Authentic Parenting in a Post Modern Culture, and how moments like these are priceless and worth more than anything money can buy. Mary speaks of authentic parenting from the standpoint of a parent who is just like us. I like how her openness and her honesty allow me room to admit I'm a parent in progress...a parent desiring to be the best parent I can be in the midst of a society whose culture doesn't resemble the culture I grew up in.

I'll be blogging about Mary, about Mary's book, and will be posting a live interview on this blog sometime this week. In the meantime, I'm heading out the door to watch for falling stars and make wishes for things both possible and impossible.