Canyonlands, vehicle returns

We finally had a day that went roughly as intended. We got up, had breakfast, drove to Islands in the Sky visitor center. We did stamps, stickers, looked around and then headed to Grand View Point trailhead. We were there early enough (around 10) that we hiked out before eating. I brought some snacks and A. and I snacked at the point. My sister had some crackers for her family and the chipmunks. We returned, then drove back partway and stopped at a picnic point. My sister had cheese sandwiches for her group. I had snacks for A. and me. I had hummus, pb&J on a bagel from breakfast, grapes, an orange, some raspberries. Then we drove to Mesa Arch and did that short trail, got some nice pictures of the group at the arch. We spotted R. and T. returning, and gave them access to the car for more food since they had gone ahead without stopping to join the picnic and cell service was not good enough to retrieve them earlier. Upon our return to town, it was about 1:30, and no one was starving, so my sister got to go swimming. R. got a bike ride on the road. We returned my car and his bike. R., A., and I went to Milt’s for burgers, fries and onion rings. The wait was 45 minutes, but very worth it. We packed up.

My son's heart is clearly in the right place: he understands about the importance of people making decisions for themselves, and he abhors cruelty. Youth and social skills deficits, however, mean that simple messages get through much better than more complicated ones. And I am not one for simple when it comes to politics and values. Yet so many on the right side of the spectrum are.