Today my youngest son, Garrett, pulled off his Eagle Scout project for the Boy Scouts of America. He had planned and coordinate the entire thing by himself. The project was to build a French drain around a large pavilion located in Frying Pan Park, one of Fairfax County's parks. The pavilion had a 12-sided metal roof and no gutters, so the rain would run off and erode the earth at the base. Garrett located and identified the project, designed the drain system, obtained all the approvals, then recruited fellow scouts, church members, and class mates to show up and help.
Heavy rains had swept through the day before as a cold front passed through, and Saturday morning it was only 30 degrees with a stiff wind. Fortunately, the ground was not frozen. More than 20 people showed up to dig a trench about 10 inches wide and a foot deep, and more than 130 feet around the pavilion. We brought hot chocolate and donuts, which helped fortify the helpers. Garrett circulated among everyone, guiding them on what to do and directing all of the efforts.
I found that I was still weak from the chemotherapy -- after a few minutes of shoveling, I was wheezing and gasping for breath. I took some satisfaction watching Garrett coordinate and direct the work. He is maturing rapidly, and is overcoming the social awkwardness of mid-teens that is compounded by his Asperger Syndome.
The work moved relatively quickly, and by 1 pm all the gravel was in the trench, the earth smoothed out, and the gazebo swept up. We were done. I was so appreciative of everyone who came out to support Garrett. We returned home muddy and wet. Garrett willingly cleaned out the car and hosed off all of the tools while I climbed into the hot tub, then took a nap.
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