Zipping to the Back

John and his chair have been quite the adventure. Each new day brings with it more skills at driving it and more desire to go faster and faster all the time. He has now mastered top speed through the house and has realized that if he slows down on the corners and goes fast on the straightaways that he doesn't get yelled at so much.

The adventure took a new turn this evening. Our Jeep, our only vehicle, died and is waiting for mechanics to work their resurrection magic so we are afoot, well Mark and I are, John is a-wheeled. Tonight we had him ride along with us as we walked to church. At first he zipped off and left us, Mark used that volume and tone that only a father can achieve and John stopped dead in his tracks and waited for us to catch up. Then he was to hold daddy's finger and stay with him. So he buzzed right past Mark, grabbed his finger with his best death grip and took off at top speed. That voice again and again he stopped. I thought I was going to roll in the street laughing. John stopped to watch the birds and then zipped down the road, stopped to see the manhole cover and zipped, stopped to say hi to the tree that he likes, then zipped. It was a real adventure. At church he impressed everyone with how fast he can go, or scared them, but his control of the chair did actually impress them. At the end of service he was so ready to go, but sat there as told and patiently waited for daddy to say he could go. When the word came John zipped out of the sanctuary at top speed, we all wondered what he was up to, he turned a huge and very fast circle in the parish hall and then parked himself in the middle of the door leading out of the sanctuary before the first person could get to the door. As the first person got to him he stuck his little hand out to shake hands, and proceeded to shake every hand until the church was empty, Mark's and mine included, then he was done and ready to go. There are moments that your child just makes your heart soar, Mark and I were both having that moment as we reached down to shake the little hand that was offered so politely from the boy with the biggest grin in the world.

Mark had to stay at church for confirmation class, leaving John and I to walk home in the growing dark alone. Mark told him that he was to hold my hand and go home like a good little boy, and for the most part he did. There were a few false starts, a few abrupt stops but all in all he came home so well, I was very impressed, he even came up the 3 ramps to the front door without my help. Tomorrow we are repeating this adventure somewhat. John and I will go down to church for the lunch and then come back home again. I'm guessing he'll be even better at this tomorrow.

Mark and I are almost brave enough to have him out in public by choice, as opposed to now which is more by necessity, by the time we can afford the carrier to put on our hopefully soon-to-be-resurrected Jeep, we should be brave enough and John will be so good at this. I can't wait to see him at the zoo, at the mall, at all the places that we go, but wait I will, and enjoy the walks tomorrow with my awesome little boy.