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| This is Xavier, on my shoulders years before the Redbox Incident. |
This
last December my 5 year old (now 6 year old) son Xavier, showed me that he
understood more about religion at age 5 then I did at age 25. Here’s what happened.
We had
walked a couple of blocks from our house to the nearest Redbox Video rental
machine. Xavier started walking on foot
but by the time we were half-way down the second block he had decided that his
feet needed a break so I ended up carrying him on my shoulders (as I usually
do).
When we
got to the Redbox Kiosk , Xavier was still on my shoulders and that put him
about eye-level with the new release ads that are at the top of the box. For those of you who are unfamiliar with what
Redbox is, it is now the most common way that films are rented in the United
States (they are a movie rental dispersal kiosk, you walk up to the box, use
the touch screen to select the video disc of your choice, then the machine
spits it out and you return the film back to said machine at your earliest convenience). They are the illegitimate child of a
Blockbuster Video location that had a one-night stand with a vending machine. And
in an attempt to cash in on the upcoming holiday season the Redbox gods had an
ad for the film “Son of God” front and center on the display.
For
those of you who might not be familiar with the film “Son of God” , it’s a film
about a Jewish super-hero that was set roughly 2,000 years ago. Apparently it’s
based on some book (it’s a good read but people are always arguing back and
forth on whether or not the story is unbelievable or just plain “not believable”).
Anywho,
so I’m at the Redbox, staring at the screen, rolling through this week’s
cinematic entertainment options while my son is locking eyes with the Lord,
silently challenging him to a staring contest (careful Xavier, Jesus always
wins).
Then I
hear it, the sweetest little voice in the world, from above the top of my head,
my son’s words rained down upon me asking a simple religious question. Xavier asked me “Daddy, have you ever met
Jesus?” That’s a pretty heavy question coming from somebody who still sits in a
car-seat.
I said “No,
not yet Buddy. Maybe someday if I’m really
good ‘ll get my chance.”
That’s
when he told me “If I meet Jesus, do you
know what I’m gonna say?”
I was
super-intrigued “No, what?”
Xavier
said “I would tell Jesus (long thoughtful pause) to tell his Dad (longer
more-thoughtful pause) to tell (longest most-thoughtful pause ) Santa that I
want The Avengers Lego Set for Christmas.”
That’s
right, even at 5 years old Xavier knew that when it came to Faith, that true
Salvation could only be achieved through social networking.
Then he
said, “Daddy, if you see Jesus before I do can you tell him about the Avengers
Legos for Christmas?”
“Yes I
will” I promised.
Did
Xavier get that Avengers Lego Set for Christmas? He most certainty did, because
more so than God, Jesus or Santa Clause I wanted Xavier to continue to believe
in me. If I told Xavier that I’d pass
the word along to Jesus, Jesus’ father,
and eventually Santa Clause then that’s what I was going to do.
I love
the way that this kid’s mind works. He is a little smarty pants who sees the
world as a never-ending ball of possibilities. And in my eyes Xavier is my
favorite of all of the Avengers, because he embodies the best qualities of all
of them.
Xavier is smart and sarcastic like
Tony Stark (Ironman). He always uses his problem solving skills and favorite
new technological gadgets to solve his problems (Xavier spends more time on my
smart-phone than I do).
Xavier has many Thor-like qualities as well.
Both Xavier and the God of Thunder are blonde older brothers, who are
constantly almost being foiled by their younger brother’s/ worthy adversaries (
Loki /Quentin). Xavier also used a
hammer to help me put together he and his brother’s bunk-bed this last weekend
(very Thor-like as well).
Captain America and Xavier both
share a strong sense of patriotism (Xavier’s mother was in the US Marine Corps)
and are strong leaders. When Xavier and
Quentin aren’t mortal enemies they play nicely together and Xavier is always
Quentin’s fearless leader in the field of battle (or in their case the toy-room
of play).
As for The Hulk, well Xavier is a
bit clumsy and has been known to knock things over (he doesn’t know his own
strength) and he does own a purple pair of sweatpants (which of course is a
mainstay of Hulk’s wardrobe. Xavier may
not be big or green, but we do constantly tell him that if he eats more of his
greens then maybe he’ll grow up to be big and strong like the Hulk.
Xavier is honestly the world’s
greatest super-hero in my eyes. To me a
super-hero is someone who uses their God-given abilities to help save the world
and make it a better place. Whether they
are a 2,000 year old bearded Jewish Super-hero (Jesus) or a member of the
Marvel Universe (the Avengers). Xavier’s
presence in my life has saved my world, turning me from a care-free kid to a responsible
adult and father. If you ask me, that’s
pretty super.
Which is why I feel a little bit
guilty for lying to him. I told Xavier
that if I met Jesus I’d tell him that the first thing that I’d do is talk to
Jesus about the Avengers Lego set.
However, I’m sure that if I met Jesus the first thing that I’d say to
him is, “Thank you for my wonderful family!”
Then the second thing that I’d mention is the Avengers Lego set. Why bring up the Avengers Lego set at all? Because even the world’s mightiest super-hero
needs to have a little bit of fun sometimes.
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| Here I am with my two favorite Avengers, Xavier (left) & Quentin (right). |
