Been entertaining  cousins this last week. I’m always amazed at how much you can have in common with your family, even if you’ve never really spent much time with them.

My cousin has come to visit with her teenage son, who, I was relieved to find, is not a surly American youth. D. is a bright, curious, and sometimes smart-alecky young man. We like him alot.

We spent the day in Santa Cruz. Now, one of the problems with squiring around visiting relations is that they often don’t want to wait while you draw. But not these cousins. They are content to amuse themselves while I mess about in the sketchbook. And then they are appreciative of the work I’ve done.

And D. was covetous of my little sketchbook, Tombow pen, and water brush. So covetous that he instisted on buying his own Moleskine in the Santa Cruz bookstore. After finding an art supply store, I bought him a little kit of pens and a brushpen. He was pleased.

I always fantasize futures for kids I meet. D. loves cars, recreational vehicles, music, and art. I hope he’ll study all of these and incorporate them into his life in such a way that makes him into the person he wants to be. I know that may not turn into the future thatI think would be cool for him. He’ll make his own choices. But at the same time, I can’t help but imagine him making art that roars at top speed through the hollows and hills of his life, and says something important about the times during which he lives.