20 things a son should learn from his mother

Recently I have seen a few people posting a link to this 20 Things a mother should tell her son post and each time I read it I find myself disagreeing with many of the things to be taught. It is written from a particular perspective on life that differs from my own.

I am a son and I have a mother and have some thoughts on the matter. Here is my response

My Daughter Has Become My Grandfather

In our house dinner time is family time. Laura and I try encourage conversation at the table. We ask the girls about their day and sometimes get information from them.  More often our attempts are stymied. Typically the answer I get when I ask what their favourite thing was about their day at school is “recess.” Lately that has changed.

Basketball with Ghandi

The other day I saw this great little film via the magic of Facebook and Gawker.  Only thing is that it is actually a commercial for a Thai telecommunications company.

It is an inspirational, beautiful, emotional story.  When I first watched it, I thought “wow that is a great video!”  I decided I would write a post about how doing small things can make a difference in the world.  I thought I can fit that fake Ghandi quote about being the change you want to see in the world into this one.  Then my cynical media awareness trainer brain kicked in to gear.

Public Service

Today my Member of Provincial Parliament and the former Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty announced his retirement from the legislature. He served for 23 years as the elected representative of Ottawa South and nine years as Premier.

There will be many people who offer comments on what they feel is his legacy.  I am not going to do that in any significant way.  Instead I am going to focus on his willingness to serve and public service in general.