A while back I mentioned a little girl in Dearborn Schools who was troubled, and troubling in this particular contact with her, because her father was off fighting somewhere, and I hypothesized that it didn't really matter who he was fighting for, this was just a kid who missed her daddy. It dawned on me while I was driving to work this morning, that this particular state of affairs is probably not unusual in this day and age. For whatever reason. Dad's never been in the picture. He's in Afghanistan fighting. Divorce. Drugs. Prison. God only knows, in many cases. Makes me wonder how to respond in some instances, where the student's behavior isn't what it should be. Or do I need to be strong for their own good? As much as some of them probably hate me for it. It also occurs to me, given the events that have happened in....God, the last 10 years or so now in schools.....being in education isn't as safe as it used to be, for anyone concerned. That's really sad. Of course, given the allegations that have arisen about the Catholic church, and everybody else, who IS one to trust? Who have we EVER been able to trust? Truly and deeply? If a new society was to ever have any mantra, "passion and trust" should be it. That's probably not likely to happen, and maybe I am just on my little one-man crusade, tilting at windmills, but it seems crucial to me for the existence of a proper culture. And truly, I understand in my own mind that not everyone needs to be a Nuclear Physicist, a doctor, or yes, even a teacher; although I still believe in my own mantra, "Rabbi, Sonsaengnim, TEACHER," that it should fall in there somewhere, but c'mon, shouldn't we stabilize our culture, merely in the interest of giving our young people a genuine reason to have some passion, instead of simply expecting cultural write-offs and rap stars? There are 450 potential playing jobs in the NBA, 1,696 in the NFL, and 750 in Major League Baseball. For a grand total of 2,896 potential playing jobs among the three leagues. You do the rest of the math. Better yet, believe in math (and science.) Period.