Lunch, anyone?

Today is a perfect summer day. Randy and I got up early and spent a couple of hours in the garden. We’re now on our way to Starved Rock State Park to do some homework for our family reunion. Days like today should be spent at a place like Starved Rock, Centennial Beach, or Six Flags Great America. Can I just share my favorite Great America story?

As I have previously mentioned, Quinn is a genius. In addition, his Creativity Quotient (CQ) is off the chart. I learned years ago to stop trying to figure out how his mind works, and to simply rejoice in the knowledge that the way it worked was preparing him to become a scientist who would be able to think about things in ways that no one else would.

When Quinn was about 12 he was invited to go to Great America with a friend. He was supposed to take his lunch. I had somewhere to go the evening before, but as I left I told Quinn to make his lunch and put it in the fridge to keep it cool. The next morning I got up to fix breakfast. I opened the fridge. No lunch. I, of course, thought he had forgotten, so I went up to wake him and told him he better come down and fix his lunch. He said, “It’s already made.” I looked in the fridge again. No lunch. I looked behind the milk jugs. No lunch. I looked in the crisper. No lunch. “Couldn’t be,” I thought, but I opened the freezer. Not only had Quinn kept his lunch “cool,” he had provided a way to keep it cool for the whole day. He froze it inside a gallon-sized ziplock bag filled with water. That’s my little genius!