Truly Cool

Yesterday at mass we sat towards the front and on the aisle. Since Dawson is the smallest, I posted him on the end so he could watch the procession.

He intently watched each person in the procession but his eyes brightened when recognized the priest coming down the aisle. "That's Father Mike," he whispered excitedly and turned to watch him coming closer to our pew.

And then Father Mike did something that made Dawson’s day. When he caught Dawson's eye, he waved to him. You would have thought he handed Dawson some cash by the way he reacted.

We are so blessed to have two priests at our parish who do things like wave to kids while processing into church. One has been know to perform a magic trick or two in the back of the church to quiet a curious redhead of mine. When my kids greet them after mass, they don't just say hello- they hug them. When the kids play outside at preschool, they stop by to watch or blow bubbles or answer questions.

These acts of kindness to the littlest parishioners they have probably do more to build the church than any homily they preach. They are bringing the faith to the next generation. They are showing the little ones that priests are real people who can have fun AND be holy. They are allowing my children to see a vocation as an option that is actually pretty cool.

As for us, well, we think they are VERY cool.