Just another Friday for this mid-western mother of two housewife? I don’t think so.  What a great day it was to take off work and spend it with my youngest son, Michael!  This is a kid that knows how to be himself, shine in any circumstance, and nonchalantly swagger through a room or down a road. He does all of this without a negotiated pre-thought or agenda.  In true individual style he chose to wear a suit that he had just come in to from our dear Uncle Dan.  While the suit may appear to be from the ‘80s, Mike Nuessle made it seem like something that all the kids want, all the adults admire.  This suit, holding the memories of a young Uncle Dan came back to life when our Vianney High School Senior  decided it was a perfect fit in so many ways.

When we arrived at the church for phase one of our Mother/Son Mass and brunch, compliments were thrown about like confetti.  The first few were for our parking lot entrance in his ’72 Cutlass. The next several felt like the flashing bulbs of a red carpet walk.  Teachers and fellow classmates alike made mention of his appearance.  This continued during phase two as we enjoyed our brunch at Holiday inn with his highschool cohorts and soon-to-be college roommates.    The suit had arrived, but little does Michael know that it wasn’t the suit that turned heads that day…it was his individuality, knowing the difference between off the rack and off the cuff.   It wasn’t the fact that he drives a pretty cool car, it’s his non-wavering appreciation for the nostalgic, his love for the difference between off the lot and off the line.  Michael has always shone without the sun, he has always had an amazing reflection without a shadow, and he has always walked forward without an over-the shoulder notion.

Our drive from the church to brunch brought with it the highlight of my day.  Sitting in the shotgun seat I didn’t feel like he was driving Miss Daisy.  I felt like I was cruising with my son.  Stoplights are important in the hotrod world.  Whether it’s the Christmas tree that sends you forth down a quarter mile track, a yellow light-slow roll that makes you look around and notice that someone notices you, or whether you pull up and make eye contact with a friend who is also driving his mom to brunch.  Michael pointed at the light, smiled, then looked forward.  I knew it was coming.  Cutlass warmed up, windows rolled down, and K-SHE 95 on the radio that boasted a cassette tape player…the sound of both back tires turned equally against the black top, Michael held fast and steady to the steering wheel, and I waved out the window to our friends.

Church was good, meal was good, but this was the best moment of the day.  Though we are both so grateful to have spent the day with our new close friends of his high school journey, Michael and I don’t really go for forced socializing. We’re more one-on-one, make it count.   I didn’t know Uncle Dan all that well, but from the few times I spent talking with him I felt like he was a pretty great guy of few words. I’m sure he did his share of swaggering in that same suit, and with the same ease as Michael does.  I’m hoping he approves of the young man who now owns that suit, and the future unexpected and unplanned moments created on a dime and off the line by Michael.  Unexpected and unplanned…that’s what happened at that stoplight.  It wasn’t a race, it was a moment in time that occurred naturally.  It was the Mike Nuessle swagger and it was me riding in the shotgun seat of my amazing son’s ’72 Cutlass.

Final Note:  It’s a good thing that Michael does not follow my blog becuase he would not be happy with all this attention I have brought about by my words.