When teenage boys save the day

In the afternoon, when school is out, the only people that call are for Mark and he always answers the phone.

Yesterday afternoon the phone rang.  It was his friend Gavin.

"Is Mark there?"

I said, "I don't think so." (Because he hadn't answered the phone--must not be home.)

I looked around the house and confirmed, "No, he's not here."

Gavin said, "Do you know where he is?"

I said, "No."  Then I joked, "I'm not a very good mother am I, if I don't know where he is?"

Gavin, without missing a beat, said emphatically, "No, you're a fine mother."

I love that kid.

He couldn't know that I'd lost sleep the night before worrying about my mothering.  He couldn't know that sometimes I feel like I'm a lacking sort of mother.

Sometimes hearing a 13 year old boy insist you're a good mother is all you need to make it through the rest of the day.