Guitar Hero

This is a very sad story about two little boys. Don't worry, it has a happy ending.

These two little boys, we'll call them Theo and Ben, live in a home sadly lacking in video and computer games. Their Gameboys have time limits, their forays onto the worlwide web are supervised, and they are even required to watch their measly ration of PBS programming on an 8-year-old TV that (gasp!) doesn't have cable. Their cruel parents can be heard saying embarrassing things like, "why don't you go outside and play" and, "read a book" and even, on occasion, "boredom is good for you."

They are forced to endure car trips to Target without so much as the comfort of individual DVD players. The agony!

It is a sad and difficult existence for two little boys.

You will understand, then, the ABSOLUTE JOY experienced last weekend when they got to spend an entire day with their Aunt Erin and Uncle Bob. Or, really, with Erin and Bob's PlayStation2. Hooked up to their flat-screen, HD TV with surround sound. Oh yeah.

They were able to cast aside their vid-impoverished lives for a few hours of Guitar Hero and Hot Pursuit. It went beyond their wildest dreams. It was a spiritual event. Really, it was, because the next morning in church during "Joys and Concerns" Theo went up IN FRONT OF PEOPLE and lit a candle of joy because he "got to go to his aunt and uncle's house."

The happy ending to this story is obvious. Theo and Ben got to live their dream, if only for a few brief moments. Erin and Bob moved up on the "cool" meter. And Eric and I are (temporarily, we realize...) relieved of buying millions of dollars worth of electronics. Now THAT'S a happy ending.