Just a quick story...
Shaun, our son (who I never worried about getting off the way) was in his 3rd year at college and doing great. Unfortunately J's hand-me down Honda Accord, which he was driving, finally died.
I took him to pick out a brand new shiny Honda Civic through a friend working at the Honda dealership...it was our gift to Shaun.
While walking the lot, we happened to pass a sleek, pretty little 3 year old, pearlescent white Prelude which he wide-eyed...and happened to be the same cost as the new Civic.
Good father which I am, I pointed out the virtues of owning the responsible, economic and brand new Civic...
And of course he listened to me...
...So when we were done with the deal, I watched as he excitedly drove that sporty Prelude home, him the happiest guy in the world, hugely appreciative...and me the hero for the day!
He babied that car for the next 10 years, all through college and his early career, and then received joy renewed when he handed the keys to another 18 year old who looked at him with that same wide-eyed grin on his face!
I'm a predictable "Function Over Form" pragmatic, but on this memorable day, I was in the moment watching the light in my boy's eyes...and twenty years later I got the payback...
With Shaun then in his 40's, we sat man to man and yet father to son...with him reflecting back on his life, when he told me how he never believed I would actually buy that Prelude...
It remained a memorable highlight for him and he once again shared his sincere appreciation.
And as I think about it now while sitting on Windy Hill, it's still an insightful and prescient lesson that I learned from my son...
Though it was the same money...how it was spent created a changed life, and dramatically different long-term memories!
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