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the great problem set before us

“How can I construct my humble hut right here in the midst of Oxford Circus? How can I do that in the confusion of cars and buses? How can I listen to the singing of birds and also to the leaping of fish? How can one turn all the showings of the shop window displays into the freshness of green leaves swayed by the morning breeze? How am I to find the naturalness, artlessness, utter self-abandonment of nature in the utmost artificiality of human works? This is the great problem set before us these days.”
~D.T. Suzuki, addressing a conference of world religions in London, 1936

Really. What would Jesus do?!

So I was at McDonald's yesterday after spending nearly two hours at the local mall waiting to have my youngest son's two-year pictures taken, which went surprisingly well considering the wait. The wife dropped the boys and me off at McDonald's for a bit of lunch and some play time while she was going to the local scrapping store sans children.

After we had eaten, and while the boys were playing, I heard my youngest boy crying in the tube/maze/play thing. I located him alone in a dead-end tube and asked him what the problem was. He quieted down, so I didn't think any more of it until it happened again. This time, I got there in time to see two other little tube monkeys assaulting my son. As soon as they saw me, they scurried off, but I had their number.

When one of the tube monkeys exited the play area to go back to get a drink of something at his parent's table, I followed him. I told the parents that their son had just been beating on my son, and that I'd appreciate it if they would teach their kid proper behavior. The mother seemed concerned about the situation, the father said “well, he's only three years old…”, and a lard ass I took to be a grandfather said some smart-ass comment that I had to ignore lest I wanted to be arrested for assault myself.

Several minutes later, as the family was preparing to leave, the mother escorted her tube monkey over to where I was sitting and prompted her son to apologize to my two-year-old. I thanked her for the gesture. She again said “he's only three years old and he was doing it because his older cousin was doing it”, at which point I said again that it was no excuse but thanked her again for the apology.

AND THEN THE PIECE DE RESISTANCE: The father walks over and asks if we attend a church. I answer “no”. He asks if we'd like some information about a local church. I answer “no, thank you”. He proceeds to pull out of his wallet a card for a church, presumably the one he and his family attend, and offers it to me. As I have answered “no, thank you” to the previous question, I decline to take it. He drops it on the table and walks away. Not only do you allow your child to assault other children, you follow up with an attempt to get me to join your cult. Really. What would Jesus do?!