A couple of days later Dave and I decided to take a test ride on Salt Lake City's newest rail commuter line down to Provo, UT and back. We invited Ben along for the ride and had a ball. You can see why folks often assume Ben is my son -- we have the same round head and chubby cheeks. For his birthday I gave him a leather motorcycle vest with several patches on it, including one that said "These Are My Church Clothes". According to his Mom he didn't take it off for weeks.

However, I think all is forgiven. When I got home to Seattle a couple of weeks later I found thank-you cards from all of Dave's kids, very genuine and thoughtful and sweet. Thank you notes is a lost art -- and its nice to see that these kids are still keeping the tradition alive. And I was particularly delighted by Ben's card. Not so much by what he said -- I can hardly read his handwriting -- but by the drawing he put in the card. As his Mom Elayne told me, "he doesn't draw pictures for just anybody."
