February 5, 1959

Meditations by B. C. Money

We are indeed a pleasure loving people. Much of our leisure time is taken up by all kinds of athletic games, shows, radio and television programs that portray the horrors of fighting, wrestling, shooting, and all kinds of silly advertisements, with many parents sitting at the card table playing cards while the children are left to their own or perhaps watching while you play and listening to your conversation, absorbing every act or word which is recorded on the tender brain that sometime it may be recalled and be used either for good or bad.

All this brings to mind the tragic ending of a young man that spent his life in gambling and drinking which ended in murder, paying the penalty of death with his life. On the day of execution his mother standing near him wringing her hands and weeping, cried out to her son saying, “Why have you brought this punishment on yourself and shame and sorrow on your mother?” His reply was “Mother when I was a child prattling around your knees and stepping on your toes, you were sitting at a card table playing cards with your friends, leaving me to my own resources. My mind being keen and alert to the things around me I soon began to watch you as you seem to get so much pleasure out of card playing and as I grew older I remembered many of the tricks you used and I soon became an expert player with gambling and drinking which leads to shame and murder so now I have to pay the penalty with my life.” This sad tragedy soon brought this mother to her grave.

Yes, the child is much smarter than we give it credit for. He watches our foot steps, listens to what we say and may be remembered in years to come. Many times we teach our children the bed time prayer and to grace our tables while they never hear their parents pray or ask a blessing at the table. Sometime they will remember this and wonder why their parents did not pray or ask the blessing.