I learned a few days ago that a good friend of mine did something for his son that almost moved me to tears, on the spot. As an infant, he got him his own GMail account.

Of what use is such a thing to persons lacking control of basic bodily functions, you ask?

Well, my buddy uses this account to send his son messages for when he’s old enough to appreciate them:

“You were born today, and I am different now. Thanks for coming buddy. I will do my best for you.”

“You kept us up all night last night, and just when I was about to lose it, it seemed like you smiled at me for the first time. The rest of the night was easy.”

“You said your first word today, and it was “bah,” meaning pacifier.”

“You’re new nickname is Mr. 3-times. Don’t ask. You owe me, big.”

“We brought your sister home today and you were so gentle with her. You kissed her on the head and said ‘hi, baby. Do you want to play with my toys.”

Are you blubbering yet? I actually made those up, but you get the picture.

I simply cannot think of a nicer thing to do for your kid. First, it’s a powerful way to show your son or daughter that they were loved from the get go. Second – god forbid something were to happen to you – there’s a record somewhere of what you were feeling in the tiny details of life as your child came into the world. Finally, the little day-to-day details that you somehow forget as they grow up – that cute thing they used to say, the day they got their big-boy bed, the time they pee’d in the houseplant – all of those things are captured somewhere in a dark corner of the Googlesphere, stored securely in a permanent nook of our collective human consciousness.

So get your kid an e-mail address today, and ping him once in a while just to let him know you’re there for him. Always were, always will be.

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