"Auntie!" My nephew insisted as he pointed to the swing beside him. My wife paused, considered the puddle on the seat, and opted to hang from chains. Satisfied with this my nephew pointed to the swings on the other side of him and suggested that his parents join.

Using her rump to absorb the water, my sister hunkered herself onto a swing and happily obeyed her son's command.

With an aunt swinging on one side, his mother on the other, one aunt pushing him, and his father tickling him on his journey toward the sky, my nephew giggled until he decided we should all play a new game. Which we did. All four adults following one toddler across a wet playground to discover what adventures lay before us.

Watching from afar we may have looked like loyal subjects serving our king as we waited for further instructions and quickly obliging, using our own butts/stomachs/shirt-sleeves to dry miniature play equipment for his highness. We stood at attention until the captain told each of us what would be the most fun thing. And we obliged, smiling as widely as he was. Until my sister and I tried to balance a seesaw with my nephew and my wife on the other end. Bouncing required more leg strength than I care to use on a Saturday morning.

I wondered if my nephew's clear demands would continue as he gets older and he can give me some direction with some bigger life choices. So sure of the best place for me to soak up rain water on the playground, perhaps he will know the best job for me to apply for, or more simply, what exactly I should be doing with my life. Aside from discovering I'm no longer able to successfully complete a trip across the monkey bars.