“What if I stay home alone while you’re gone?” my 12-year-old son Henry asked as I was about to go out the door to get our traditional Sunday night pizza.

I hesitated for a minute and mulled over his question. It was quite monumental actually for Henry to ask such a thing since he easily gets separation anxiety. He is one who watches the clock if I’m at a basketball game or something and I’m supposed to be back at a certain time.

“Where are you at?” he will ask when I answer my cellphone on the dot of 10 p.m. “You said you’d be back at 10 and it’s 10.”

Therefore, his suggestion about staying at home while I went to get the pizza was quite surprising. Sure, the fact it was cold and raining and he didn’t want to put on his shoes and was playing his video game likely went into his proposal. However, I found it surprising his laziness would overcome his fear of being home alone.

“Are you sure you want to do that?” I asked. “Are you sure you won’t freak out once I’m out of the driveway?”

Henry’s eyes flashing back and forth as he considered the scenario. “I’m mean eventually you’ll say home alone,” I continued as the wheels spun in his head. “I was about 12 when my parents first let me stay alone for a little while.”

After about a minute of intense soul searching, Henry shook his head and went to get his shoes. “I might freak out,” he admitted as he pulled on his coat. “I’m going with you.”

So, we piled in the car and headed toward the pizza place to get our large pepperoni with Italian sausage and hot sauce from the always friendly Irish guy who works the window. However, I noticed Henry was still deep in thought on the way.

“What’s on your mind, little buddy?” I asked, detecting he was wanting to ask me something.

“What if burglars came while I was home alone?” he asked, his question giving me an epiphany.

Back when I was his age, there had been no such film at Home Alone or any of its sequels made.  Heck, Macaulay Culkin (the kid in the movie) hadn’t even been born. He is now 38 by the way if you didn’t feel old already. I was 25 when Home Alone came out. But, his reference made me realize that the Home Alone movie had changed prospective on kids being, well, home alone.

In the movie, Culkin repeals a pair of bumbling burglars who try to prey on his family’s home while the younger had accidentally been left home alone. Henry, who has watched the movie, obviously took it to heart and had likely, at least partially, based accompanying me on the pizza run on fear of the Wet Bandits picking out our house.

“You call 911 on your cellphone,” I replied, just then realizing he doesn’t have his own cellphone. “Or, you can attach a can of paint to a string and hit them on the head with it when they walk in.”

Henry gave me a questioning look. “Does this mean I can get a cellphone?” he asked.

I shook my head. “When you’re 13,” I replied. “For the time being I’ll hook you up with a can of paint and a piece of string.”