Kevin Thompson [00:00:00]:
Hey, welcome back to Change the Odds, the podcast where marriage and family were never meant to be a game of chance. My name is Kevin Thompson, and as we close out this year of 2025, first of all, I want to say thank you to our video production team here at the Thrive Podcast Network. I think about Taylor and Caleb and Jordan and Tyler and Aaron and the whole team that goes in, Bri, who's behind the scenes and does so many things. It's an honor to serve with Mark and Leslie, Morgan, the whole team, Curt and Dena, at the Thrive Podcast Network. So thank you for 2025. We look forward to 2026 and today. Oh, my goodness. I never thought this would happen by request.
Kevin Thompson [00:00:38]:
This is the first person, I think, that's requested to be on the podcast and now is going to be on the podcast. We have Silas Thompson. Silas, welcome to the show.
Silas Thompson [00:00:47]:
Thank you. Glad to be here.
Kevin Thompson [00:00:48]:
Have you ever listened to the podcast?
Silas Thompson [00:00:50]:
Not once.
Kevin Thompson [00:00:51]:
Not once. Okay. Have you ever. So I've written six books. Of those six books, have you ever read one?
Silas Thompson [00:00:59]:
I think I read the first three pages of U turn when it first came out.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:03]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:01:04]:
Haven't touched one since.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:05]:
There we go. What an honor it is to be here today. All right, so Silas, my son, 17 years old, we kind of have our work clothes on. Silas here at Granite Bay works in our facilities team. What does that mean, to work in a facilities? What do you do?
Silas Thompson [00:01:18]:
Lots of bathrooms, lots of trash. We set up all the rooms for all the events.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:23]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:01:23]:
And we just clean. Clean up people's messes.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:26]:
So you do the real work? As I'm on stage, you know, we do our best. Yes. Okay. So it's the end of 2025, and we thought we'd have a conversation here. So here's how this is going to work. I have questions, Silas has questions. We're just going to banter back and forth. I'll ask him one, he'll ask me one.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:43]:
This in all likelihood will never air is what my guess is how this is actually going to go. Who knows? We have agreed nothing will air unless we are both in agreement of it. So if we get off script and don't like it, if he hurts my feelings, we'll can this and record something else. Okay. Am I going first or are you?
Silas Thompson [00:01:59]:
Yeah, go ahead.
Kevin Thompson [00:01:59]:
All right, I'll go first. All right, so here we go. We're going to go with this. Let me ask you this. Whenever you look back on your childhood. So now you're 17, right? I mean, whenever you look back on Your childhood. What is one memory doesn't have to be the best. What is one memory you think of fondly between the two of us?
Silas Thompson [00:02:17]:
Oh, between us, it's. It's definitely. There's a moment. We're on vacation. It's mom's 40th birthday, and this memory has nothing to do with her.
Kevin Thompson [00:02:26]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:02:27]:
We're in Montana at Glacier national park, and we come up to this lake, and it's me and you. Mom and Ella are off somewhere else, running around, and it's just us sitting down, staring at this lake, just enjoying the moment together as we've been, you know, together as a family for about a week at this point.
Kevin Thompson [00:02:47]:
Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:02:47]:
Driving me crazy. That calmness, that quiet just. I mean, replays in my brain all the time.
Kevin Thompson [00:02:53]:
Oh, that's cool.
Silas Thompson [00:02:54]:
Moment.
Kevin Thompson [00:02:55]:
That's beautiful. Wow. Well, thank you. So me saying nothing is one of your greatest job. All right, your turn. Here we go.
Silas Thompson [00:03:04]:
Yeah, let's think of a. Of a good one here.
Kevin Thompson [00:03:10]:
Probably.
Silas Thompson [00:03:10]:
I think this is one of the better ones. I think. What's. One way becoming a father changed you.
Kevin Thompson [00:03:19]:
Man? There's a lot of ways, obviously, so listeners should know that you have an older sister. Ella has down syndrome, so a little different scenario. And so I think what's interesting is whenever you become a father, there's just some things you can't know until you know. And so I think the moment a woman gets pregnant, I think she's a mom. Like, immediately she feels that her body's changing. Very protective. Matter of fact, I remember one night before y' all were around, Jenny is pregnant. We're laying on the couch, and we're watching this scene, and probably, like, something like alias or 24.
Kevin Thompson [00:03:54]:
Those were the shows back then. So this very tense moment, this music is playing, and, you know, you don't know what's around the corner. And I just. At just the right moment, just go, boop. Like, just to scare mom, right? And she. I saw a side of her I'd never seen in my entire life. Like, she turned to hit. It became very evident in that moment that she was saying, I will kill you for this child.
Silas Thompson [00:04:15]:
Right?
Kevin Thompson [00:04:15]:
So I think a woman becomes a mother the moment they get pregnant. I think a dad slowly becomes a dad. And ultimately it isn't that way until they hold their child in their arms. And then it becomes this obvious, I will die for this thing. Right? This thing. I like that. That's what I see. How I see you is this thing.
Kevin Thompson [00:04:34]:
So I think one thing that you just can't prepare for is what that feeling looks like. And then. And I think maybe what struck me the most is this idea of you feel divided because now you have this child that's over here in the bassinet, and you have this. This wife that's over here in the bed. And you're like, I literally will die for both of these things. And yet you feel torn in some moments. I don't think. I don't think there's any way to explain that until you experience it that you always have in the back of your mind.
Kevin Thompson [00:05:03]:
Where are they? Are they safe? How can I help them? So I think probably one thing that might be surprising to you is there's no way for you to comprehend how much I think of you. Matter of fact, you probably wish I thought of you less, but that kind of concept is one thing that's there. Let me ask you this. What's it like? We've talked about this on the show some, and mom and I've talked about it some. What's it like from your perspective to have an older sister with down syndrome?
Silas Thompson [00:05:29]:
I don't know. I mean, so I think the best way to put it is that's my normal. I will never not have that. And so to me, it's completely normal. That's the standard I expect. And so never once have I really thought, oh, this is something that's out of place or something that's strange. It's simply the way it is for me. I mean, obviously there's been.
Silas Thompson [00:05:52]:
There's been struggles and challenges for, I mean, both of us. I mean, Ella has to deal with me. Right? I mean, that cannot be easy. But I mean, overall, I think I don't ever really think about it like that at all. No. I think, okay, I have an older sister. Here's the things she loves, here's the things that, you know, she doesn't love, and here's what she's good at, and here's what she. She's not so good at.
Silas Thompson [00:06:12]:
Just like, you know, I assume she looks at me and goes, here's the list, the long list of things my younger brother is very bad at. Here's the couple of things he's good at. And I think that's how it is.
Kevin Thompson [00:06:24]:
You are a very good brother and always have been, always very protective. Matter of fact, I don't know if you remember this, but when she moved from elementary school back in Arkansas, we had junior high, not middle school, but she moved from elementary school to junior high. It. It really kind of freaked you out a little bit because you had this protective nature. And I tried to convince you that it wasn't your job to protect her, that we had these other things in place, but you did not like it at all. Matter of fact, you kind of wanted to go a little bit faster into junior high to be with her because you were afraid of what would happen. Do you remember any of that?
Silas Thompson [00:06:56]:
I remember bits and pieces. I mean, going to the same school for a good bit of time probably makes that transition a little bit harder. But, yeah, I mean, I remember bits and pieces so long ago, I don't remember the whole thing. I do remember this feeling of like, oh, I can't be right there. And that. That feeling a lot of the times bugs me. I mean, even now.
Kevin Thompson [00:07:16]:
Yeah. But let's be honest, she's at college now.
Silas Thompson [00:07:21]:
Yeah. No, it's great.
Kevin Thompson [00:07:22]:
Okay. I just checked this. Check. All right, your turn.
Silas Thompson [00:07:28]:
Let's see. Oh, this one's good. Okay. When have you felt proud of the kind of person I'm becoming?
Kevin Thompson [00:07:37]:
Oh, all the time. I think. I think I've always been proud of who you were becoming. Here's the thing. You've always been this very kind, compassionate, thoughtful, considerate person. I mean, even last week, right, I get a message from somebody who you've interacted with. You don't even know about this. You've interacted with their child and.
Kevin Thompson [00:08:00]:
And have befriended their child in such a way that it's had a positive impact on their lives. And so this person is now emailing me for that. But, I mean, I remember all the way back to whenever you were just a little boy, you just had this compassion about you toward other people. Matter of fact, there have been times in which as much as we wanna nourish that compassion, there's been other times in which every strength has a shadow side we talk about around here is that compassion sometimes can cause you to take on the feelings and the emotions of others that aren't yours to own. So, I mean, one of the things you struggled with early on in school is when somebody else would get in trouble, you would like the justice within you would want to go take that away from them or you felt like you were getting in trouble. So there's a downside to that. But no, there's no hesitation on my pride of who you are as a person. As a matter of fact, I mean, that's on the rare occasion that you're making questionable decisions.
Kevin Thompson [00:08:55]:
I mean, the thought comes to me of, hey, that's just not who you Are like, you're this other thing. I wish you could see that and be something else. What's one thing that you think? What's one thing that you. That whenever you look at me and Mom. Right. I play a marriage expert on the Internet.
Silas Thompson [00:09:11]:
Yep.
Kevin Thompson [00:09:11]:
Not in our house. Whenever you look at me and mom, what's one thing in our marriage that you think, okay, that's okay. That's pretty good. I'd like to replicate that in my life later.
Silas Thompson [00:09:21]:
Oh, yeah, 100%. I think the easiest part and the easiest thing to say for that answer is a hundred percent, the understanding that you two have of, okay, here's the things I like to do. Here's how I like things. And then, you know, mom will go, here's how I like things. And just that kind of understanding that this is the kind of person I am with, and this is how they want to do things, and I'm not going to make them do something that they're very uncomfortable with. Like. Like, I want to do this this way. He wants to do it this way.
Silas Thompson [00:09:55]:
And I see you and mom kind of, you know, work your way around these problems. Never in arguments. Although sometimes you guys, you know, joke around a bit, you know, and Ella thinks it's an argument, but that's besides the point. But it's this. It's a beautiful thing that. I mean, I really, really look forward to having to. Is this kind of understanding of another person that. Okay, here is.
Silas Thompson [00:10:22]:
Is how they are. I understand them because, I mean, you guys have just been together so long. You. You have a kind of understanding of each other that's really beautiful because you. You can kind of begin to shape how each other think. And. And it can sometimes be to your own detriment where it's like, okay, she was willing to do this thing, but I think that's something. That's something beautiful.
Kevin Thompson [00:10:43]:
Yeah. So I'm asking multiple questions now on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the greatest marriage in the world, 1 being. It's all a sham. It's a hypocrisy. They're just staying together so that Kevin can write books about it. And seven's not an option because, as you always know, I never allow seven because. Tim Ferriss, what would you rank our marriage at from your perspective?
Silas Thompson [00:11:07]:
Yeah, I mean, from what I've seen, it's like an eight or nine. I mean, it is by far. I mean, I'm probably biased about this.
Kevin Thompson [00:11:13]:
Right.
Silas Thompson [00:11:13]:
But it's by far one of the healthiest marriages I've Seen. Maybe it's because I consider that normal now, having, you know, lived around that for so long. But, I mean, even sometimes I'll be. I'll be talking to people I know, and they'll be talking about how their parents interact with each other, and I just go, I am so grateful for the marriage that you guys have. And I can tell. I mean, you guys probably don't see it as much, but, I mean, I can just, you know, know that the. The way you guys have handled your marriage has. Has drastically impacted me and Ella's lives.
Kevin Thompson [00:11:44]:
Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:11:45]:
And how we will see relationships and how, you know, when we get married, how we expect that marriage to look.
Kevin Thompson [00:11:52]:
Yeah. Wow. This is turned into a love fest. I didn't expect this. Okay, we're 15 minutes in. We got to get real. No, just kidding. Your turn.
Kevin Thompson [00:11:58]:
Go ahead.
Silas Thompson [00:12:00]:
Let's see here. Ooh, speaking of. What is something you're still trying to get better at in your relationship with.
Kevin Thompson [00:12:09]:
Jenny or with you or with who?
Silas Thompson [00:12:12]:
I would say with Mom. I'm gonna pretend to be the relationships expert on the Internet now. And now I will ask you the marriage questions.
Kevin Thompson [00:12:21]:
One thing I'm trying to work on, I think so. I mean, you're gonna know this. Well, you're on the receiving end of it as well. So I think just. I'm always striving to become more vulnerable. So for whatever reason, the way my brain works is I have to have the answers. I can't have need. I can't.
Kevin Thompson [00:12:40]:
I'm living in this constant fear of if I put my needs out on the table, she's gonna look at me and go, oh, you're just too needy and leave. And you're probably like, yeah, you are too needy. That's the reality. And so that ability to be more and more vulnerable of. Here's what I feel, here's what I think. I mean, the listeners have heard me talk about before, that it took 10 years before I could ever tell mom I didn't like something she cooked because I didn't want to cook.
Silas Thompson [00:13:03]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:13:03]:
Who am I to critique, right? And so. But. But. But what I'm doing in that moment is I'm actually robbing her of the fullness of who I am. And so I think that's something that. That. That I. I want to do better.
Kevin Thompson [00:13:18]:
And I think it's something she's. Here's what's happening. She has shown me such trust and respect that I know how she's going to treat my heart, that I can be as vulnerable as I want to be now. Now it's just a moment of, can I grow in that trust to be as vulnerable as she actually needs me, needs me to be? I think what's been like that as from a son's perspective with a dad who is not very emotional, who is like, this is. What's the sign? Tell me. It doesn't have to be the exact moment. Tell me, what am I like when I'm mad?
Silas Thompson [00:13:57]:
It's honestly kind of strange. It's like when a teacher, When a teacher gets upset with you, you get that kind of stern responses. Right. I make jokes all the time. That your preaching voice is your lecturing voice. And that's very true. You kind of, you get all up on this kind of, okay, here's my authority. Let me push that on to you.
Silas Thompson [00:14:20]:
Let me show you why what I'm saying is important. And I mean, I tune out to my thought.
Kevin Thompson [00:14:25]:
Like, I, Like I'm preaching, like your sermons.
Silas Thompson [00:14:27]:
Yeah. Which maybe, maybe that's why I turn out the sermons. Right. But it's very much so. This, this kind of sense of, okay, let me show you my authority and why I'm right in this situation.
Kevin Thompson [00:14:39]:
Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:14:40]:
Not a, you know, here's the basis of understanding.
Kevin Thompson [00:14:44]:
Even. Even though I am right, arguably, sometimes. Okay, so that wasn't my actual question. Here's my actual question. What's one thing you think I could have done better as a dad? It doesn't have to be the main thing, just something.
Silas Thompson [00:15:00]:
Yeah, I mean, I'll just go with the most recent one. I've been thinking of.
Kevin Thompson [00:15:07]:
You regularly.
Silas Thompson [00:15:08]:
We got a long list. We got a long list to go through. I mean, one I was thinking of today was. I mean, there are a hundred percent times where I feel unlistened to which I think is very, you know, normal in this kind of. And I mean any, you know, relationship in which there's this kind of power dynamic between people. I think the, the person at the top of that typically thinks, okay, I'm in charge of this other person. I'm going to, you know, listen to what they have to say. And then a lot of times it goes out one ear.
Silas Thompson [00:15:38]:
Right. And so, I mean, like, even today I've told you much about my disdain for, for artificial intelligence and you as a person who loves that kind of thing.
Kevin Thompson [00:15:46]:
Yes.
Silas Thompson [00:15:47]:
You know, writes me questions in artificial intelligence.
Kevin Thompson [00:15:51]:
So I curated it. I didn't. It didn't come up with it on its own.
Silas Thompson [00:15:55]:
This is a great example.
Kevin Thompson [00:15:56]:
Yes.
Silas Thompson [00:15:58]:
That kind of thing. And so, and so I think There's. There's. There's aspects of that. I think it's a listening thing mostly. And I mean, I think it's a. It's a problem. I mean, it's not just you.
Silas Thompson [00:16:07]:
I think mom does it too. Yeah, I think the majority of parents do it. I mean, people listening. If you're a parent, listen to your kids. I mean, let's be realistic here. We're little people. We. We kind of.
Kevin Thompson [00:16:18]:
You used to be.
Silas Thompson [00:16:19]:
We know the. What we're talking about from our perspective.
Kevin Thompson [00:16:21]:
Okay, so what'd you say there? Oh, wow.
Silas Thompson [00:16:25]:
This is ridiculous.
Kevin Thompson [00:16:29]:
These are the jokes you've had to put up with your entire life?
Silas Thompson [00:16:31]:
We have more to add to the list.
Kevin Thompson [00:16:32]:
Yes. No, that's exactly right. I mean, this. This is the actual joke. What do you think is the. What's the phrase you've heard me say the most? In other words, whenever. Like, what. What's the.
Kevin Thompson [00:16:44]:
What's the thing that you think, man, this is. That just beats this dead horse like crazy on this.
Silas Thompson [00:16:51]:
There's a few notable things. So one of the things whenever I think about things you say constantly that I hear and I recognize, and I'm like, oh, I know who said that. The first is your laugh. I can be in the worship center. There's a thousand people in there. I hear your laugh, and I know exactly where you are.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:11]:
Do you know the difference between the real laugh and the fake laugh?
Silas Thompson [00:17:13]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:13]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:17:14]:
You can 100% hear it.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:15]:
Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:17:16]:
The fake laugh, I think, is the one I know better because of how much it's used.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:19]:
You've heard. You've heard.
Silas Thompson [00:17:21]:
Yeah. Another one, I think, back in Arkansas. I mean, I haven't listened to one of your sermons recently.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:25]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:17:26]:
No offense.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:26]:
Thank you.
Silas Thompson [00:17:27]:
You used to always say, you know, open your Bibles to.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:33]:
You have your Bibles. I hope that you do. Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:17:35]:
Then, boom. Obviously I haven't listen to one in a minute.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:38]:
Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:17:38]:
So I don't know.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:39]:
What's the biggest relationship advice I've ever given you?
Silas Thompson [00:17:42]:
Marry up. That's the one. And so, you know, always going for.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:48]:
If I've taught you anything, marry somebody who makes more money than you and takes care of you.
Silas Thompson [00:17:55]:
Marry out of you. That's the marriage.
Kevin Thompson [00:17:56]:
There's another piece of advice that I've regularly said that you will remember as soon as I say it, which is be careful who you marry. Why they're the most likely person to kill you. To kill you.
Silas Thompson [00:18:07]:
Yeah. I have very clear memories of being young, walking into a room, watching you see some Documentary about, you know, a husband or a wife getting into an argument and then leading to something. I'm like, this is our marriage pastor here.
Kevin Thompson [00:18:23]:
Yes.
Silas Thompson [00:18:23]:
This is what he does in his free time.
Kevin Thompson [00:18:25]:
This is the power of being my son. As you get advice like, be careful who you marry, because that's the most likely person to kill you. All right, your turn.
Silas Thompson [00:18:34]:
Let's see here. Oh, this one's good. What mistakes did you make as a young man that you're hoping I avoid?
Kevin Thompson [00:18:43]:
Yeah, Well, I think. I mean, the good news for you is there are aspects of mons personality that you have that I don't have. The downside to you is there are several ways in which you are like me, unfortunately. So I think just my personality by nature has this is. I'm driven too much by fear and not enough by the security that I have in God and who I am as a person. And so I think that holds me back a lot. And then I think I passed a lot of that on to you. So I would think to have more courage to do a wise risk.
Kevin Thompson [00:19:25]:
So, I mean, think. You know me, I'm a man of routine. Right. So that idea of. I think we could have moved from Arkansas a little bit sooner had I been less afraid, could have had some more potential and opportunities and those kind of things. But I even think of how I parented you and Ella, and I think it's more personality. I don't think it's because she had down syndrome, although maybe that plays into it. I think I was just too fixated on your own safety.
Kevin Thompson [00:19:52]:
I would have risked your life more. Yeah, I think because then that creates within you this awareness. I mean, now part of it, your personality would have it as well, because we share an aspect of that. So I would say that's a huge. A huge issue. Early on, I think mom and I got a lot of things right, But I think that's one aspect that I probably would have done differently. I probably would have focused a little bit more in on, like, with Ella specifically, being more like, even they're physically active. So I think I'm so focused on don't get hurt, that then that cuts down on the activity of what's going on.
Kevin Thompson [00:20:29]:
So I think that's a mistake of some sort. All right, here we go. Let's go with mine. So what's one thing that you hope to do better than me at as a man?
Silas Thompson [00:20:45]:
Oh, lots of things.
Kevin Thompson [00:20:46]:
Wow.
Silas Thompson [00:20:47]:
Lots of things.
Kevin Thompson [00:20:48]:
The quick. The quick response on that was fascinating.
Silas Thompson [00:20:51]:
Yeah. No, so there's. There's a long. A long list of things, I think, you know, when I was thinking, I mean, on my car drive over here was I want to be more impactful than you. And that's not. Not saying that you're not impactful. I think it's because you are so impactful to other people's lives. That kind of instills that.
Silas Thompson [00:21:10]:
That want in me to do the same, to go out to help people, to influence people, to make better decisions. It's really something. I mean, seeing you do it for so long has really pushed me and given me that want to go out to help people, to just make sure, you know, I mean, I think it's part of something that we do where we, like, control over stuff.
Kevin Thompson [00:21:36]:
Right.
Silas Thompson [00:21:36]:
We like to make sure that that kind of thing happens. But I just want to go out to help people, to influence people to make what I think are better decisions. Now, obviously, you know, that's something I will have to work on.
Kevin Thompson [00:21:53]:
Do you feel pressure to do that?
Silas Thompson [00:21:55]:
Not really, no. So it's something, I think for a long time, especially my childhood, I did. But I think the more I grow, I think there was a time in which I would have never said that, where what I would have said for that question is, you know, be more physically fit than you. You know, that's a good one. Had to add another one in there.
Kevin Thompson [00:22:12]:
Still take you right now. I don't know about that once.
Silas Thompson [00:22:17]:
But. No, I think. I think in recent times especially, and maybe, you know, it's working at Bayside has done that with me, getting to see all these people's lives change for the better and to see people happier than when they came in at the start and to see the impact that you've had on other people's lives that have made their lives better, it instills that want in me to do the same.
Kevin Thompson [00:22:42]:
What's it been like? So, I mean, the perception I have. And I could be wrong because maybe I wasn't listening, the perception I have is that Ella loves being the child of a pastor. Right. And you don't always. You're not always as fond of it. And let's be honest with what it is. This is not fame. This is not celebrity.
Kevin Thompson [00:23:02]:
This is none of these things. This is. We used to call it Fort Smith, famous back in our hometown. This is. So here at Bayside, this is. Okay. There's 10,000 people that know you.
Silas Thompson [00:23:11]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:23:12]:
Whereas by. The average person has maybe 100 people that know them. So you have. There's more. So it's not fame by any means, but it is this. People know who you are, and there's pros and cons to that. So what's it been like for you? Being that it's.
Silas Thompson [00:23:29]:
Honestly, it's pretty. It's interesting. So I think the part that bothers me about it, I would have absolutely no problem, you know, going up, doing all this kind of thing. I mean, I tell you all the time, I could, you know, I listen to parts of your sermon. I go, I could do that easily.
Kevin Thompson [00:23:43]:
Yeah, Yeah, I could do that.
Silas Thompson [00:23:45]:
No. Right.
Kevin Thompson [00:23:45]:
Very confident about your preaching ability that you've never done very much.
Silas Thompson [00:23:48]:
So I think I could go and do it Sunday. But no, I think the part that bothers me is knowing that all of these people now know who I am, but I don't have the ability to necessarily go out and know all of them the same way that they know me. And so what saddens me is I go. Somebody says my name, calls me over, I go, hi, how are you doing? But I have no idea who this person is. And that's what bothers me. Now, the more that people do that, the more I learn who they are, which is a good thing. But what saddens me is I will not be able to have a personal connection with all these people. And I mean, it's just.
Silas Thompson [00:24:28]:
It's a strange thing in general, someone coming up to you, telling you a story about your childhood.
Kevin Thompson [00:24:33]:
Does it feel. I mean, do you feel hypocritical or do you feel that it's unfair of, you know, me? I should.
Silas Thompson [00:24:40]:
Exactly.
Kevin Thompson [00:24:41]:
You're valuable. I should know you.
Silas Thompson [00:24:42]:
That's 100% what it is. I feel bad that I don't know them the same way that they know me. And so I strive to kind of understand, you know, who are you? What are you doing? You know, how. How can I understand you the way you understand me? And so whenever. I mean. And the problem with, you know, so many people now kind of just at least knowing my name is I can't do that with everybody. And that kind of. No, that idea.
Kevin Thompson [00:25:11]:
That's fair. So if you. Here's an interesting question. If. If you could be raised now, many listeners won't know who these people are because they're in various places across the country. But we'll explain. We're gonna use one person and explain what we're looking at. If you had to change out right now who your dad is with one of my co workers or bosses.
Kevin Thompson [00:25:36]:
So one of the pastors at Bayside, right there's a lot to choose from. Which one would you choose and why? And it's not so much about the person, but we're gonna talk about what are the qualities of that person. But who would it be?
Silas Thompson [00:25:48]:
That is a tough question. I'm trying to think. There's. There's a few options.
Kevin Thompson [00:25:54]:
Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:25:54]:
I think, you know, the. The simplest solution is Dustin Larson. Just because.
Kevin Thompson [00:25:58]:
Okay. Yeah. Your friends, their family. Yeah.
Silas Thompson [00:26:01]:
Beckham's great. I'm trying to think. I mean, if I wanted.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:05]:
Let's go. But. Let's go. One of the kind of stage pastures that you see. Is it gonna be Mark?
Silas Thompson [00:26:10]:
Probably not.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:11]:
No. Definitely not.
Silas Thompson [00:26:12]:
No, no, no.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:13]:
That would be ridiculous to be raised by him, don't you think? So who. Who. I mean, your favorite pastor, your favorite preacher is Andrew.
Silas Thompson [00:26:20]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:20]:
Andrew, you love Brian.
Silas Thompson [00:26:22]:
Brian's incredible.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:22]:
Curt, obviously, is great as well, you know, so. So which of the. Is there one that you would.
Silas Thompson [00:26:27]:
Is there? I don't really. I think. I can't. I can't think of that. That kind of, you know, world where.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:35]:
Okay, yeah, I'm not switching. Okay.
Silas Thompson [00:26:36]:
Maybe the marriage, pastor, son. Maybe it's a bad question, but if I had to choose, probably Andrew.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:41]:
Yeah. Andrew. Yeah. Just be entertaining to listen to. Imagine getting in trouble by Andrew. It's this Irish voice that's coming to you. I could listen to that. Unlike.
Kevin Thompson [00:26:50]:
Unlike what you currently have. All right, your turn. Next question.
Silas Thompson [00:26:55]:
Let's see here. Oh, this one's good. What do you. What do you hope me and you, our relationship looks like, you know, when I'm, you know, 25 off somewhere, not at home.
Kevin Thompson [00:27:06]:
Yeah. So these are the things that keep me up at night. Right. So here's what terrifies me. What terrifies me is you do have a personality, at least at this stage in life, but you're still being formed. Right. You're eight ways away from your frontal lobe being fully formed. Right.
Kevin Thompson [00:27:21]:
And so. But, like, right now, you're not the best at always texting. It's kind of out of sight, out of mind. Right. As some of our family members back in Arkansas know. And so that terrifies me, that idea. I get that our communication will be different and those kind of things. But what I want is I want a weekly meal, probably lunch.
Kevin Thompson [00:27:47]:
I still want. I want that set kind of weekly rhythm that we have. Right. Right now we go to raising canes and that kind of thing. I like the rhythm of that. And then what I would like beyond that is I would like regular kind of texting or calling Kind of communication. And I want to get to the point that as you. As you become an older man, that you don't hesitate to call and say, hey, what do you think about this? Not that I'm ever dictating to you what should happen, but this idea of this relationship, of I'm one of the trusted voices in your life that will speak to you and give you advice as you then go off and make your decision.
Kevin Thompson [00:28:27]:
What do you want?
Silas Thompson [00:28:30]:
I don't know. I expect you guys at Christmas, Thanksgiving.
Kevin Thompson [00:28:33]:
Hilarious if you said, you're dead to me.
Silas Thompson [00:28:36]:
But, yeah, no, I mean, I think you. You got it pretty good. I mean, I'm. You know, I expect Cane's on Fridays and, you know, texting, calling. I don't know about that one. I'm not. Not too good at that.
Kevin Thompson [00:28:46]:
No, I know, but I. We text a little bit. Yeah, you respond to, like, every fifth.
Silas Thompson [00:28:51]:
Text, something like that.
Kevin Thompson [00:28:52]:
I mean, you know, I think I. All right, so let's do two more each. Right. So be thinking about that, of where we're going. We're gonna kind of begin to wrap this up a little bit. What's a moment you talked about earlier. Listening, and that's a very fair thing. What's something you feel either a situation where I totally misunderstood you or just in general who you are? What's something you think that I don't get right about you? Hmm.
Silas Thompson [00:29:20]:
I think for a very long time, at least from my perspective, I felt this. This kind of. And it was probably because I was. I was far younger. And then for a long time, I mean, the listeners probably don't know. I'm very quite reserved. I mean, even at the house. I mean, you know, I like my space, my time, my kind of fame.
Silas Thompson [00:29:41]:
And so I think there went a very long period in which we didn't have a ton of deep, meaningful conversations about, you know, however, you know, ideas I had. And I think now it got far better. But there was. There was a good period of time, you know, middle school, early high school, where I have all these ideas and all this. This stuff. And when I talk to you about it, you bring up, you know, your ideas and something like that, and then you just go off on your idea. Not really, you know, listening to mine now, though, I think we have. We have very good conversations.
Silas Thompson [00:30:15]:
I mean, like, you know, lunch. Lunch on Fridays. I think we have very deep, meaningful conversations about a wide variety of topics. But for a long time, it felt.
Kevin Thompson [00:30:24]:
Very, you know, I'd pivot it to my concept. Oh, I Got you. Is that. Is that. I mean, not. Not just beyond that. Is it. People often ask mom, like, oh, how cool is it to live with this guy who always has all these ideas? And she's like, oh, yeah, real cool.
Kevin Thompson [00:30:39]:
Like, I wish he'd go weed eat.
Silas Thompson [00:30:41]:
Like, no, 100%.
Kevin Thompson [00:30:43]:
You get sick of being like the.
Silas Thompson [00:30:45]:
This is the fifth hour. He's been typing on his computer too many ideas.
Kevin Thompson [00:30:49]:
Or to be the test dummy of. Do you get tired of me telling you what your personality is?
Silas Thompson [00:30:53]:
Yeah, sometimes I think the, you know, fifth personality test of a vacation, which.
Kevin Thompson [00:30:57]:
Is part of your personality claims.
Silas Thompson [00:31:01]:
So I think that's where Ella gets it. Now. Ella does the same thing to me where it's like, oh, take this test for me. Oh, yeah, let me. Let me figure it out.
Kevin Thompson [00:31:09]:
Ella does do that a lot. She sends a lot of those.
Silas Thompson [00:31:11]:
I know.
Kevin Thompson [00:31:12]:
She's a social media manager dream. There's no doubt. All right, you got it. Next question is yours.
Silas Thompson [00:31:18]:
What is a mistake you made that you know you made that impacted me in a way that, I mean, maybe I don't realize it or I do that. I mean, you think about and you're like, ah, I should not have done that.
Kevin Thompson [00:31:30]:
Yeah. So we've written about. About our shared anxiety of what that looks like. So the book Fearless Family is actually you. I don't know if you remember this. You actually approved the intro to Fearless Families before put it. You can actually sue me now, saying that you were a minor and you didn't have the right to do that. You could have all my debt.
Kevin Thompson [00:31:49]:
So. But I think early on with that anxiety and even now, to a certain extent, it's always difficult to figure out, is this the byproduct of anxiety or is this rebellion? Which is it? So if I'm saying. I mean, so whenever you're little, if I'm saying, all right, let's go to school, and you're like, no, yeah, okay. For a good period of time, that was rebellion. And it's like, what do you do about this? Right. Well, what we learn later is. No, that's anxiety. So how do we navigate that in a proper way? So I think looking back, I think.
Kevin Thompson [00:32:20]:
I think looking back, even some of the things that I have in my mind of. Look, I was trained at the time, a counselor was like, hey, you got to sleep. Train these kids. And so put him to bed, spend your time with them, and then leave. And whenever you leave, if he gets out of bed, put him back into bed and then close the door and Then hold it shut and eventually he'll come down. So I still remember, like, you as a little bitty boy, like screaming on the other side of the door and it breaking my heart and me going, no, this is what the experts have said. This is what's best for him and all. And now I think it's greatly screwed you up.
Kevin Thompson [00:32:53]:
But I. Wow. So I think I look at things like that and to go back, I remember I spanked you one time. And do you remember that at all?
Silas Thompson [00:33:04]:
Yeah, I think so. I think I also remember mom threatening the cowboy belt.
Kevin Thompson [00:33:08]:
Oh, Mom. Mom would spank you now. She'd have no problem with that. But I remember I spent you one time and I told Jenny, I can't do it. Like, I cannot. I do not have that ability to do that one. I don't think it's necessary, but I just don't have that ability and I can't. And so I still feel guilt over that.
Kevin Thompson [00:33:26]:
Over. Over that. I just don't think it was the right thing to do in the moment. I think I was punishing things that you couldn't necessarily control. So those kind of things I will say on the opposite side, things that you won't remember, that I just will never forget is. I mean, one thing I did write as a parent. Right. Is I never took for granted the time that we had.
Kevin Thompson [00:33:50]:
And so generally, mom would put Ella to bed, I would put you to bed. Right. We'd watch videos on my phone or whatever. And then you'd go to sleep to George Strait. And so just laying there and knowing these moments are so fleeting. Yeah. And I still embrace them probably. I probably actually put you to bed too much.
Kevin Thompson [00:34:07]:
Right. Instead of letting you learn how to do that on your own. But I think those moments are. I just cherish them so much. Do you. Do you remember? You probably don't remember. Do you remember what I used to say whenever I would get up and leave your room? Yeah. You might have been asleep part of the time, but I would always say, I love you, I'm proud of you, and you're going to be a mighty man one day.
Kevin Thompson [00:34:28]:
And I still believe that. All right, one last question. We each get one last question. So I want you to think hard. Think about what it might be.
Silas Thompson [00:34:38]:
Think about a good one.
Kevin Thompson [00:34:38]:
You want to go first or you want me to.
Silas Thompson [00:34:39]:
Go ahead and Let me pick one.
Kevin Thompson [00:34:41]:
I'm going to go. My last question is this. Ten years from now, you're 27. Right. Where do you see yourself and what role could I Play for you whenever you're 27. That would be the most meaningful for you. How could I. How could I help you?
Silas Thompson [00:35:04]:
Well, 27, hopefully married by 27. You know, house, you know, dog, that kind of thing. You know, living the dream, stable job, you know, stable income. And I have the ability to then, you know, call you on my own time, obviously, since that's what I do.
Kevin Thompson [00:35:23]:
Don't call me. I'll call you.
Silas Thompson [00:35:25]:
Yeah, call you and say, hey, here's what's going on. Here's, you know, I need. Need some advice on this thing. And. And I. I assume, and I always have assumed that when I get to that age, that's gonna be. The majority of our conversations is gonna be, you know, hey, here's what's going on in my life. You know, I need the wisdom of, you know, a marriage, you know.
Kevin Thompson [00:35:50]:
Yeah. Pastor on the Internet, marriage expert on there, always there. No question. No, here's the thing. I mean, we've talked about this before in the past when you started driving, and one thing I said, if you're ever in a wreck, whenever you make the phone call, the first thing you say to me is, dad, I'm okay.
Silas Thompson [00:36:07]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:36:08]:
And then you tell me what's going on. But there's another thing that we have between us, and it's simply this. In any situation you're in, in life, if the first words I hear out of your mouth are, dad, I need you, everything else goes away. No judgment, no consequences. Now, there might eventually be, but in the moment, whatever, you're not going to get shock from me. You're not going to get. How dare you. You're not going to get.
Kevin Thompson [00:36:33]:
What do you. It's Dad, I need you, ma'. Am. Full resources of me there completely. All right, last question.
Silas Thompson [00:36:40]:
Last question.
Kevin Thompson [00:36:41]:
I'm nervous.
Silas Thompson [00:36:42]:
Let's compare ourselves here, okay? You at 17, me at 17, looking at the course of our lives, where it's going, who's doing better.
Kevin Thompson [00:36:51]:
Yeah. So you at 17, with a girlfriend, with a fully funded Roth IRA of your own doing, with a job, versus me, my senior year of high school, having never gone on a date, having not worked a job yet. Clearly me. I mean, there's no.
Silas Thompson [00:37:17]:
I mean, look at where you are now.
Kevin Thompson [00:37:19]:
Keep the totals of what. Now, there is an argument of I was already in my chosen profession, I was already working in that way. But, no, it's not a competition by any means. But I will say, where you are in your life, there are many things in which you are well beyond where I was at 17, and you have everything. You have everything that you need at this moment to be successful in life. You weren't raised in perfection by any means. Here's what you did have. You were raised by two people who fully loved you, who would take full responsibility for things that they got wrong, and will do everything in their power to support you from this point forward.
Kevin Thompson [00:37:59]:
What you do with it is now literally between you and God.
Silas Thompson [00:38:03]:
Yeah.
Kevin Thompson [00:38:03]:
And we're here to help, but we recognize mom and I are clearly aware there's not much we can do now to. To change what's going on, but, man, you have all the potential in the world. My prayer for you is simply this, that you would see who God has made you to be and go out and be that to the fullness of who you are and not be concerned with anybody else. So, ironically, I'm praying that you would be more like Mark Clark is what I'm doing in this.
Silas Thompson [00:38:32]:
Wow. Not sure how I feel about that one.
Kevin Thompson [00:38:35]:
No, I'm just kidding. But, no, buddy, I love you and I think the world of you. And, yeah, thanks for being on my podcast.
Silas Thompson [00:38:42]:
Yeah, of course.
Kevin Thompson [00:38:42]:
It was great. Maybe next time I'll preach to you so you'll listen.
Silas Thompson [00:38:45]:
Yeah, no, that's okay.
Kevin Thompson [00:38:46]:
All right. Hey, don't know if that's meaningful to you or not. It's meaningful to me, so God bless. We'll see you in 2026.