A Better Human

I spent some time with my new…ish granddaughter today. Tsunami is getting bigger and more focused by the day, probably by the hour. Like all beautiful little creatures, she is learning about the world and her place in it the hard way. She is figuring it out by herself. Eventually, her mom and dad will be able to give her hints about how the world works and she may even learn a few things from her Poppa Ken.

I am looking forward to teaching her that mom and dad don’t have any control over what I do and when she is in my care, she goes by my rules or lack of rules. Well, to a certain degree, don’t want to piss mom and dad off too much or Tsunami and I won’t be able to watch “The Princess Diaries” together or any of the Cinderella take offs that are out there. My luck she will want to watch “boy” movies and I will have to watch the “girl” movies by myself.

 

Today, my son was in the W.I.N. second hand store at lunch, just checking things out. Sometimes you come across some interesting bauble that will catch your eye and it can take a place on your workbench until you find a use for it or give it back to the second hand store. He didn’t buy anything, but his trip did cost him some money.

While he was walking the aisles, a little girl was complaining to her mom that she was hungry, really hungry. The mom told her that maybe later they can go to her aunts and get something to eat. The little girl asked if they could have a real meal. The mom just said “Maybe.”

Brendan left the store and decided that he can and should make a difference. His company will match charitable donations to the Food Bank and the government will match that figure so he made a donation that should make a difference to a little girl and her mom. Well, to many little girls and their moms.

All of my kids are generous when it comes to charity; they get it from their mother. I would like to think I am the kind of guy who makes a difference in the lives of the less fortunate, but I am not. I mean well, but my follow through is less than stellar. I guess I am going to have a long, hard look at my life and see if I can’t change.

Hopefully, Tsunami, Hurricane and Tornado will never know hunger and will pick up generous habits from their parents so that they can help the less fortunate when they get older. I have already noticed that generosity in Hurricane and he is just seven years old. It makes me very proud.

Perhaps Poppa can learn to be a better human from his grand children.