Foundations of Parenting: Love and Service!

My biggest fears, and conversely my biggest aspirations, concern my kids. Oftentimes, when I was younger, older folk would often begin their observations of my, or my generation's behavior by saying "In my time..." Like most younger folk, I would bristle inwardly about the litany to follow.

Sadly, and only because I do not share, at this moment in time, God's divine irony, I find myself wondering about how my kids will cope with the world that they have inherited from their largely irresponsible forebears. Specifically, I wonder about how my kids will react to the reality of widespread poverty, and spiritual malaise. Will they embrace their civic and Christian duties? Will they develop a healthy respect for individuals regardless of social, economic, and religious differences? Will they serve?



Yesterday, Bishop Chito Sanchez picked the entire family up to visit the orphanage of Jesus Loves the Little Children Foundation. I wanted the kids to come and see what papa does because I realize, despite my obstinacy and pride, that there is very little I can say to them, now or in the future, that will truly help them realize how important it is to love, share, and serve others. They have to see it. They have to experience it. They have to make their own, hopefully informed decisions about how to deal with the world they were born into.

And it's not just about them. Bishop Chito has been operating the orphanage since the late '90s, and the sad reality is that despite all the many technological and medical advances that Man has made in the last century, we still have to find a remedy of something more than cardiovascular: the indifference that has built around the human heart.



Bishop Chito is spearheading a fundraising event, which I am proud to be part of, for this worthy cause later this year. I would like to invite people to participate in this endeavor. There is much that remains to be done, but as these pictures attest, there are smiles to be saved.