What’s one thing you experienced growing up that you didn’t realize was out of the ordinary until later in life?

June 18, 2025 | Sparkle Wednesday

We recently finished building a new garage, complete with a small workbench equipped with a new vice, just waiting for a project to begin. Standing there, I couldn’t help but think of my dad and his version of a workbench.

Growing up at The Ponderosa (my childhood home), my dad had a sprawling workshop in the basement. This wasn’t just a man-cave, or a place for tools; it was a full-blown studio, lab, and experimental zone all rolled into one. Machines buzzed (always early on Saturday mornings), projects sprawled across benches, and curious contraptions often lived (sometimes forever, as if frozen in time) in mid-process. I’m pretty sure that his infamous bottling machine was even born there, as were many other ideas. It was wild. And now I realize it was his sanctuary.

As I look back, what stands out now is how naturally that space existed within our home. I don't recall my mom ever bugging him about the giant mess. It was big. Thinking back, she was pretty chill about it. No one really questioned what Dad was up to down there. It was understood: that was Dad's workshop, his happy place.

Now that I’m older and have a home of my own, I realize just how rare and special that setup was, a dedicated space for creativity, invention, and giant mess, right in the heart of family life. And maybe, just maybe, this little garage workbench is the beginning of my own version of that legacy.

What about you? What’s one thing you experienced growing up that you didn’t realize was out of the ordinary until later in life?