Wandering Boy

Yesterday while visiting my in-laws we headed out to birch bay for the afternoon. Aiden was super excited to go because his grandparents had just bought two single kayaks.  Prior to this he and his cousin had to go out in one of two two man kayaks that was quite heavy and required them to paddle together.   Once he was on the water he was ready to go impatiently waiting for me to head out on one of the bigger kayaks as the adult supervision on the water.  Once we got out there he "wandered" as far as he could in his single kayak to explore what was around him.  And it made me smile for this is a trait.

Aiden likes to explore and is pretty independent on looking for things on his own.  And a bit oblivious to where he is going because he's intent on his exploration.  I watched Aiden cruse off ahead of me and away from me as we were out on the water and found myself doing what we do anywhere we go-call him back closer and remind him to come or go a certain direction.  Once he got back to the beach he wandered off oblivious to how far to check out some tides and needed to gently be called back a bit closer.

I love my wandering boy and his intense curiosity for the world around him.  I've watched as his inquiries into the things around him have drawn him more confidently away from me was we head to the zoo, the park, the beach-out into the world-away from my side.  But then he still returns and holds my hand to chat away about the jelly fish he found, or to help find the python at the zoo, or to see the bug he found at the park.  As he grows beyond being ten, his explorations will only get further away and more  I hope he continues to go exploring but still seeks out his mom to see what he has found.