Just doing my part to shepherd a child's heart!

Being committed Presbyterians, we have been catechizing our kids since they were little. Catechizing means to instruct somebody in the basic principles of the Christian religion using questions and answers. We use the children's catechism when the kids are small, then transition to the Westminster Shorter Catechism when they are about five or six. I am amazed with how much their young minds can absorb and retain.

Teaching young children about valuable, sacred things is an essential part of being a faithful parent. In light of this, and knowing that Brian will struggle with such faithfulness toward his children (not as it pertains to Christianity, but in an important area still), on two recent occasions we have watched his young, impressionable children. I have felt it necessary, as Uncle Tony, to do my best to expose them to sacred things their father will surely neglect. They should not be faulted for being born in to a home that doesn't know what a World Series Championship looks like. Little Sadie, their three month old girl, can't be blamed for the lack of proper exposure to pinstripes, the house Ruth built, and the warm New York baseball crowd. But I say unto you- may it never be! I ask you- should I stand idly by and watch this horrid neglect? No I say! I could not live with myself. It is my calling to help these poor children lest they become uncultured and deficient in proper sports dedication and understanding like their father. It is my calling to step in and stop the pathetic Texas trend that has beset the Hough line for generations.

In this light and admittedly without parental permission, I slipped a baby Yankee cap on Sadie last Saturday night as an initiatory act of Yankee devotion (pictured above). Then again tonight, in an act of impassioned service to a family who just doesn't have the necessary wisdom to know better, I held Sadie in my arms for 3 innings of Yankee baseball against the White Sox! I could swear I heard her say "Matsui". I admit a sense of pride welling as I thought of the great good I was doing this young, previously neglected child. The smile that came over her infant face was more than gas, it was a look of peace that only comes when one hears the crack of a Yankee bat. I even tried to teach her to yell at the ump for a bad call New York style, talk about precious moments.

This is what community life is all about- one family making up for the (massive) deficiencies of another. I know Brian will thank me some day, but for now, let's keep this between us, OK?