My Darling Children

My Darling Children

May your most precious memories be of

brilliant morning suns rising to greet you on 

days filled on with never ending promise.

Of adoring parents to love you,

families to embrace and care for you,

One day, your own children returning 
through a welcoming door.

Friends and comrades to walk 

alongside on your journey.

Those who will take pause to 

note your presence, 
admire your visage,
respect your integrity 
and trust your judgment,
those true few who will remain  

until the end of time.

Forever gentle gloamings 
to usher you through nights 

filled with sheltering peace.

HL 9/22/13

My Prayer; The Return of The Supplicant

ORIGINALLY SUBMITTED APRIL 1, 2009

Dear Mr. God:

As we know, I have not complained much about getting older. Time has been reasonably kind to me and I am particularly grateful that when I shower and look down, I can still see my toes and other appurtenances, so all praise to you and so on and so forth.

I will admit that while I am often quick to damn (oops!) things when they don’t go my way. On the other hand, you must admit that when I do, I usually have pretty darn ("darn". I said, "darn") good reasons for doing so.

When The Elder Heir expounds

I've been listening to The Elder Heir expound upon socialist economic theory followed by an explication upon the murderous dynamic between Othello and Desdemona. All the while, I’m thinking, "This guy ain't even got a high school diploma. He's gotta be guessing!" - and wishing we could turn away from the youthful arrogance of ignorance and return to that age of innocence when together we cuddled beneath the shelter of The Giving Tree. Sigh. HL September 2010

Update: Today they gave him the diploma. Now, not only is he smarter than I am, but he can parade around like "Joe Cool" and there is nothing I can do about it. I suppose it means that when he expounds, I now have to listen to him. June 9, 2013

The Giving Tree

Fathers and Sons

A reminder that while it is every son's birthright to lead dear old dad ‘round the mulberry bush once in awhile, it's every father's  birthright to pop 'im in the ol’ weasel (figuratively, of course) for thinking he could get away with something so monkey dumb! (They mail the report cards home, oh, young chip off the ol' block!)

Whippin' the Urchins!

When the urchins walk into their rooms, shut the doors and insist I knock before entering, I refuse to accept this as growing teenage estrangement. I prefer to think of it as a childish reaction to the fact that daddy finally won a ping pong game and won’t stop bragging about it! (Whipped 'em good, too!)

February, 2009

My children were born geniuses

When my children were babies, I was convinced they were born geniuses. Thankfully, laughter intervened.

12-16-11

Hoop Dreams Abound!

UPDATE: Jack the Lad carries on as captain and point guard of the BHS JV, that recently extended its'  undefeated streak to 25 games while AJ the Elder has emerged as a Varsity glue guy. Dad remains consigned to pom-poms. January 2013

Puppies and Small Children

I believe in the perfectibility of puppies and small children. Grown men, women, and smelly old dogs present longer odds. HL 

Jack and Valentine - 2005

AJ and Valentine

Jack and Valentine

The World's Greatest Thumb Typists!

My son has a cell phone. In the past 30 days, he used it to speak to another human being for a total of 37 minutes. In that same 30 days, he sent or received 6,252 (that’s SIX THOUSAND TWO FIFTY TWO!) text messages.  He may never be able to write legibly, but he is a member of the greatest generation of thumb typists the digital world has ever known.  I’m so proud!

12/9/11

Jack the Lad begs for the hickory stick

Summer 2011 Jack the Lad threw his 3rd shutout in a row, struck out 10, lowered his ERA to 1.26, raised his record to 4-1, then strode off the mound and said to me, “Dad, could you hit me now - or ever?” I considered grabbing a hickory switch and inviting him to meet me in the woodshed, but instead, confessed, “No way and never.” Then, we picked up my shattered fantasies and together rode the clouds all the way home.

Postscript: Spring 2012 New season, a new reason to believe.
Jack the Lad followed up a 6 inning 1 hit 0 run 2 walk, 10 K performance with this line last night in a CG win over Dedham last night: 7 3 1 0 7, 73 pitches, 58 strikes. 1 Earned Run in his last 21 innings and I still think I can hit him! Some people never learn.  Spring 2012

When they said hold up, he ran.
Summer 2013:  playing in the highly competitive 23 team 16U travel league, Brookline compiled a  20-4 record including  a 10 game winning streak to win their first ever league championship. The Urchin skillfully mans second base, hits .357 and runs through the coaches stop sign to score the winning run from second on a single to center in the championship game.  My boy. I think I'll keep him.

Postscript 2013 - JV
7.2 innings 3 hits no runs before an error, stolen base and another error lead to a 1-0 loss. Heck, I coulda done that! (Lost the game that is). Gutty outing, l'il Warrior

Postscript Summer 2013
Although unsuccessful in defending their championship of the previous summer,  the Brookline Bashers have concluded another fine season, finishing 19-7. Meanwhile, "The No Longer Can I Call Him Urchin" hits .494 (!) including an insane streak during which he went 22-31 and not a fluke among them. I mean, what kind of numbers are those? For the stats driven, he had a .516 on base percentage, .649 slugging percentage  while leading in virtually other every hitting category (ok, he didn't walk much). His OPS (slugging plus on base percentage) of 1.165) topped the best seasons of Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds, proving conclusively that you don't have to drink beer or juice to be an MVP. To top it off, he went 3-2 with a 1.98 ERA on the mound.
Now, when the Big Lug and the Wiry Urchin talk baseball, I sit quietly in the corner and wait for the nurse to bring my steroids so I can match their exploits before it gets too late.

Summer 2013

 

2011

Special Guest Appearance by The Big Lug

Mark Twain on Fathers and Sons

"When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years." Mark Twain (My kids may think I'm a dope today, but if I stick around long enough, I'm gonna get smart again! Oh, glorious prospects!)

Grandmas and Grandsons

In the North End tonight, as the gloaming framed the Boston skyline, Grandma saw Urchin Jackie play baseball for the very first time.  When the Urchin snared a hot grounder and turned a snazzy double play, Granny beamed bright as any light in the harbor and told everyone in sight, “I know him! He’s mine!” Sometimes, it’s all so right.

July 21, 2010

A Father's Wish For His Children

"There are two things I would most like to do for my children. The first is to take away all their fears. The second is to give them all the courage they will ever need." - HL August 28, 2010