Fast, fun, and scary 18 years

Sandy and Luke Southern at signing day.

There were times when I wondered if this day would ever come. Now it’s here and everything is happening so fast.

On May 29, 2001, my wife gave birth to our first son together but our third child in our blended family. On May 31, 2019, Luke Southern will graduate from B.F. Terry High School in Rosenberg. The 18 years in between have been quite a ride.

When Luke was born, he was immediately whisked away and placed under and oxygen tent. He had trouble breathing due to being born in the high altitude of Colorado. It didn’t take long for his tiny body to adjust. Although that was a minor hiccup, it kind of set the tone for his life.

He has always been a kind, loving, happy-go-lucky kid. When he was a year old, he was standing on the toilet and fell off, fracturing his leg. He never cried or complained. The doctor said it was so minor there was nothing we could do, so he went from just having learned to walk to crawling again for a few weeks. It was a short time later when he started walking again that his big trauma came along.

We had floor-to-ceiling windows in our kitchen and one day we had the windows open. Luke toddled over and pushed the screen out. He fell about three feet face-first onto the concrete below. His face was a bloody mess and we had no idea how seriously he was hurt. The most helpless feeling I’ve ever had in my life was the moment I handed him over to the paramedics and they strapped him onto a stretcher and raced him to the hospital.

Fortunately, nothing was broken, and the worst of the damage were the scrapes on his face, which quickly healed. Over the next few years he proved to be quite accident prone, including a little tumble that split his ear open. We started calling him Boo Boo Bear until he started answering to that instead of his name (which had become Luke … Luke … LUKE!).

When Luke was 4, he was diagnosed with celiac sprue, an intolerance to gluten. It basically means he is allergic to wheat, rye and barley. It’s made for some dining challenges over the years, but nothing we couldn’t overcome. As a result of his diet, Luke is the thinnest and healthiest in the family.

As I mentioned before, Luke is very happy-go-lucky. He was never interested in sports and he dropped out of Boy Scouts early on. He just got along in school, never getting spectacular grades but always able to grasp what he was being taught. We’ve known for a long time that Luke probably wasn’t going to go to college, which was fine, but we didn’t want him to grow up to dig ditches or flip burgers either.

It was the summer after he finished eighth grade that he discovered his passion. He joined a junior high program at Lamar High School that built a kit car. That sparked a love for cars and a passion for working on them. He took all the automotive technology classes he could in high school and even earned dual credit in the process.

This fall, Luke will return to classes, this time taking diesel mechanics at Texas State Technical College. I’m very proud of him. Based on what they told us at TSTC, he stands a very good chance of getting a job right out of school making as much or more than I do with a four-year college degree and 32 years of professional experience.

In the meantime, he’s got his 18^th birthday, graduation, and a whole slew of family coming in to celebrate.

So Luke, allow me this moment to tell you how happy I am for you and how proud I am of the man you’ve become. You’ve had a remarkable journey that I’ve only just touched on here. My advice to you is to enjoy this time and celebrate this new chapter in your life. Never lose your smile or your sense of humor – you’re going to need them in life.

Work hard, be happy, and keep your faith! May God bless you always!