Male bonding may not look the same for everyone, but my son and husband had a sweet moment last evening. Greg, my son, who is in Florida, often gets to watch the Shuttle take off, and last night was a rare night launch.Greg is a Renaissance kind of guy who has many interests. He loves flying planes, building computers and going to the farmer’s produce market on Saturday mornings. His new hobby is making beer. (This is the same two year old boy who asked, as the priest offered me the Communion Cup, "Dat beer?"--still makes me cringe and his dad pop his buttons with pride.)
Recently, Greg made some beer for the first time and sent Mike home with several bottles, but told him they would not be ready for a while. Yesterday was the big day. The beer was finally ready. So Mike set the alarm for 1:15 A.M. in Texas, and got up to watch the Shuttle Endeavor launch on TV and unveiled the first beer of the batch, knowing Greg was having a similar moment in Florida, watching the launch in the real night sky. Even though miles apart, they knew they were connected with a celebration that only a pilot and his proud father could truly appreciate.