Okay this really made my week. My sister-in-law calls me saying "Can you please talk to your nephew. We were getting ready to watch a movie about a volcano in California and he burst in to tears knowing that's where you live. He doesn't think you'll ever come home to visit anymore". So he gets on the phone and he's crying. I ask him what the matter is and he says through tears "There's going to be a volcano in 'Caninfornia' (that's how he pronouces it at five) and you won't be able to come back to visit." I assured him that I love him dearly and nothing would keep us from spending time together.

This nearly brought me tears. Why? I left Virginia Beach almost 9 years ago. At that time I made a promise to myself to prevent my now 9 year old niece from thinking of me as 'the uncle who lives somewhere really, really far away and not know what I do or who I am'. I go home to visit every chance I get and spend a lot of quality time with her and her 5 year old brother. They call me "Stephon Rocks"! I'm like the 3rd parent when I'm on the case. Sometimes it makes me anxious to get married and have children of my own...........and sometimes it doesn't.