On Daddies With Funny Last Names

The front page of this morning's paper here in Memphis boasts the headline "Illinois ousts Blagojevich."  Seeing that on my way back from court after having dealt with some of the more -- shall we say -- frustrating members of the Memphis bar, got me to thinking about my strange last name and the reputation that must come to mind when my friends and associates hear it.  Which, of course, caused me to think of Daddy Blagojevich because I'm sappy and think about such things.  I thought about how Daddy Blagojevich, who I came to find out is actually not worried about his very memorable name being on the cover of every newspaper in America this morning since he is dead, must be mortified.  But before I knew of his demise, I thought about all that Daddy Blagojevich (Radisav, actually) must have done to ensure that his son had opportunities and that he made the most of them.  And how I do the same thing.  And how my dad did the same thing.  And how dads through the ages have done the best they can to give their sons and daughters more, and then they turn it over to the kids at some point to make their way in the world.  And there, on the front page of every newspaper in America this morning, is Radisav Blagojevich's last name above an account of how his son "failed the test of character."

How sad.

But how inspiring and how challenging, too.  It's certainly not all Radisav's fault, but we daddies have a lot to do with whether our sons and daughters pass the tests of character that life presents.  Walt is a fortunate little boy to have a mommy and daddy and so many other people contributing to his "cram session" for one of life's most important tests.  Let's all try really hard to help him get it right.

P.S. -- If Walt ever runs for office, don't vote for him.  That will make our job a lot easier.