Have fun, but be careful

Have fun, but be careful.

Did you ever have one of those days that made you pause and think: That's pretty good unsolicited advice?

Me, neither.

That is, until this weekend.

It started on Friday afternoon.

I was pumping gas (yes, I do that) at what I still refer to as the Flagway station on East Main Street in Hillsboro.

While filling the tank, I couldn't help but notice and overhear a pleasant-looking lady in a dated green Ford minivan driving away from her (I'm guessing) daughter.

"Have fun," the lady in the minivan said. "And be careful."

"I love you," the daughter responded.

Sure you do, I thought. But not nearly as much as your mother – who drove away in the old minivan – loves you.

That sentiment is not, by any means, meant to be disrespectful to the daughter.

It is, quite simply, meant to serve as an example of what parents endure on an everyday basis when it comes to the safety and well-being of their children.

Have fun.

Be careful.

A million or more years ago, I once asked my dad why he hadn't insisted that I did not do certain things. Things that I knew he would have preferred that I not do.

His response was direct (as his responses usually were).

"I learned a long time ago to never give an order that I knew wouldn't be carried out," Dad said.

"With that in mind, have fun. And be careful."

I seriously doubt that there's a teenager among us who fully comprehends that parental advice. I know I didn't.

At 17, in May 1979, I graduated from Whiteoak High School with roughly 60 of my closest friends. A few days later, Kirk Knoblauch and I left Highland County for a two-week road trip to Stanley, Idaho.

At that time, I had no idea of the fear and apprehension that Kirk's parents and mine were going through. (Kirk and I probably still don't realize what they went through for those two weeks in May 1979!)

At my son's graduation ceremony Saturday, May 18 at North Adams High School, senior class president Sheridan Carroll emphasized, in his speech, the importance of having fun in life.

I do not disagree.

I've known Sheridan's dad, Adams County attorney Greg Carroll, for more than 15 years. I also once hired Sheridan's older sister, Chelsey. (Not that one has anything to do with the other.)

However, life's perspective can change greatly from that of the invincible 18-year-old to that of the more experienced parent and grandparent.

Having fun is all well and good, of course.

But do some of us a favor and be careful, too.

Please.

Watching those 2013 graduates from the area's high schools, I have to stop and think about their respective parents, too.

As a parent for almost a quarter of a century, I think I can safely say that we, as parents, want happiness for our children.

But humor us just a little and be careful.

We do love you, after all.

Rory Ryan is publisher of The Highland County Press.