Jonah is twelve and a half. Nearly thirteen. His body is slowly twisting into a new form. Look at him one way and he's still the baby that couldn't wait to start walking. Always in motion. Look at him in another way and you can see his neck thickening up and smell the B.O. from the soccer field. He still has my voice; people get us mixed up on the phone. But that won't last much longer. 

We have entered into a new stage of parenting. I can sit him down and give him certain life lessons. He takes them seriously. He's still not enough of a teenager to eye roll, but old enough to retain my words of wisdom. So, we have our chats. 

When he forgot his French notebook and couldn't study for a test, we talked about how mistakes should be embraced as opportunities to learn. How can we come up with a new system for organizing our work? 

This morning, I added two more pearls to his repertoire. 

1. Always check to see if there is enough toilet paper, before you sit on the bowl.

2. If you use the last square, be a good citizen and get two new rolls from the hall closet for the next bathroom visitor. Pay it forward, man.