My sweet bride of almost 26 years has displayed unimaginable patience with the four men she has lived with for a good portion of our married life.  One husband and three boys… I have asked for years now what she did as a child that was so awful to deserve us.  Her response is always the same:  The Lord knew that we could not possibly function without her.  She could be onto something there… Today I will tape a video for the annual church senior banquet honoring our #2 son, Daniel.   None of our boys will be surprised. She carefuly scripted her comments that are to be videoed well in advance.  I wish now that I had a copy of the trascript she did for Randall when he graduated in 2007. 

Every once in a great moon a mother can feel and express pride in her offspring.   Moms deserve that privilege.  They have certainly earned it.  So today I share Jan’s thoughts about one of our three wonderful son’s.

Daniel Thomas Knox made his debut around 6:00 in the morning on May 22, 1992 and has been an early riser ever since (well, at least until he became a teenager). As a toddler in his crib, he would wake up at the crack of dawn, calling for his daddy to come and get him so they could play “cars and trucks” on the brick ledge in front of the fireplace while everyone else was still asleep.

As a toddler, Daniel developed a strong sense of right and wrong. He had a habit of hiding in the “blanket closet” when he knew he had done something wrong. So anytime Daniel was missing, that was the first place I looked.

Daniel has always been quite an actor. As a boy, he loved to dress up in all kinds of interesting apparel. Hats, capes, sashes, and swords were staples in the Knox household toy box. Even to this day, he can be known to sport a costume, like this last year when he helped his International Congress team win the Best Costume award by dressing up as Batman to represent the nation of Gotham City.

Daniel has always been adept at multi-tasking, which at times would really frustrate his teachers. Over the years, several teachers have relayed stories of how Daniel appeared to be off in a daydream world, paying no attention at all to what was being said, only to immediately give the correct answer to any question asked of him. Even now, he can study for a test, watch a basketball game, recite player statistics from memory, and text on his phone – all at the same time!

Because of his reserved nature, not everyone is aware of his quick wit and public speaking abilities. He can be a formidable opponent in a debate and entertain a group of friends with his own unique brand of comedy.

Daniel has always loved music, from the time I would sing to him while rocking him to sleep, until now. He learned to read music while playing the French horn in band and taught himself to play guitar. He even composed songs for the informal band he was a part of during his teen years.

He has excelled in academics – winning honors in speech and debate and Academic Decathlon, becoming a National Merit Commended Scholar, and graduating 8th in his class.

As you can see, Daniel is a well-rounded, talented young man with great potential, and as his mother, I am very proud of him in all his accomplishments. But the most important thing he has ever done was his decision to give his life to the Lord and become a Christian when he was 12. My prayer for him is that no matter what profession he chooses or what great things he accomplishes in life, he will always live for the Lord, first and foremost.

Daniel, I love you and I’m very proud that you are my son. Go with God.