Life in our house is often comedic, and I think we could be a sit-com in the making if Zack would stop breaking the rules for appropriate dress in family TV.

I blissfully slept in until 10 a.m. on January 1. Jay had been up for hours and I was sure I’d find him studying the Bible at his desk. But today he was playing a video game. Ha! I’m not completely sure why that made me as happy as it did. Maybe it assuaged any guilt I could-have-but-really-wasn’t-feeling-at-all for being lazy. Maybe it was just an indication that he was relaxed and enjoying life. Either way, I was delighted.

My only desire that morning was coffee. My goal? To sit on the couch with a huge mug in my hands, reflecting on the previous year and contemplating the one ahead.

But before that, I determined to have Zack smelling good on the first day of the year. So my second words to him after “Happy New Year, Zack!” were, “Time for a shower, bubba.”

He pealed off his earbuds, set his iPhone down, and began stripping off his shirt. “Clothes in your laundry basket, ” I said, following him to his bathroom. Then I hovered in the kitchen, waiting to see if he would turn the shower on without help.

One of our steps toward independence for Zack this year was making a bedroom for him in the corner of the house where our laundry room and his bathroom are located. My agenda was to confine his tendency to roam through the house naked. Surely with his bathroom right there, he would have no reason to ever be without clothes in front of others.

In the kitchen, I noticed that Jay had made coffee—love that man!—and left me a hefty amount.

But before I could pour any, Zack noticed it, too. And he made a beeline for the French Press, rushing past me à la buck naked. Ever eager to serve, he eagerly filled a glass with the “hot” beverage.

As he headed toward the refrigerator to get the half-n-half, it occurred to me that this naked barista intended to complete his coffee service by carrying the glass through the house to his dad.

I was torn. Should I thwart my dear son’s servant-heartedness to reinforce modesty? Or should I let him serve in all his glorious freedom?

I decided for modesty and insisted Zack take his shower and dress before acting as butler to his dad.

Anybody want to hire a barista?