At the end of each day, when it really comes down to it, my son is all that matters to me. But oftentimes, in this profession, it’s hard to separate work and family when I’m not physically on the job—there is no 9-5 for magazine editors, and weekends are just the sixth and seventh day of the week, most of the time. So naturally, I’ve tried to involve my son in as much of the stuff I do as I can—without going overboard, that is.
Throughout the years, my son’s interest in all things automotive has wavered from intense, wanting to go to shows and races, to ho-hum, rather play video games. But regardless of what his level of enthusiasm happens to be, I try not to force anything on him when it’s more lackluster than excited—I want his personal interests to develop naturally so that whatever he’s into, he’s really into it and not because I want him to be. It’s not always that easy, especially at times such as when the Winternationals or L.A. Roadsters Show come around and he’s not so eager to tag along—which ultimately can dictate whether or not I go to said events.
But just when I think he’s about to grow out of hot rods, motorsports, etc., he does something that totally amazes me and thus re-instills my faith that he’s still got his father’s oil-laced blood running through his veins.
Here’s a good example: One day after school, he was dumping the contents of his backpack on the dining room table as usual when a small piece of lined paper caught my eye. In pencil he’d written, “If I ran for president, I’d run Moon Eyes.” To his teacher it surely made little sense, but to me, it meant everything! More recently, his mother had sent me a text message that basically said, “Thanks, your son now wants to be a NASCAR driver, and he’s dead serious!” Again, I may have been the only one who took great pride in hearing that, as I’m sure his mom would rather him become a musician or an artist—which I’m fine with too, as long as either one is automotive-inspired!
In the back of my mind, though, I wonder what it will be like in 10 years when he’s of legal driving age. Seeing how much things have changed just in the last 10 years for me, I’m sort of concerned that his options, should he still aspire to build a hot rod, let alone drive one, be so limited that he’s unable to. It would be a shame to get him all fired up—even started on his own project—only to find out when the time comes that he can’t legally drive his hot rod on public streets because it can’t be registered as an operable vehicle. Yes, that is an extreme scenario, but it’s not so farfetched that it can’t actually happen. But you know what? I’m not going to let that deter his aspirations, whether it’s to become a hot rodder like his dad, president, the next Richard Petty, or even an astronaut—what matters most is that he follow his dreams and become what he wants to be.
For now, I’m just going to continue taking advantage of any opportunity that he wants to go to the races, a car show, or just lend a hand out in the garage and help me work on one of my projects. Regardless what the future holds—for either of us—all that really matters is we’re able to enjoy as much time together as possible.