Ya know, sometimes one just overflows with pride. I often wonder what my boys might have become if they had had the opportunity to grow up. David would be just a few years younger than Ralph.
I had Ralph as a young'un in elementary school my first year of teaching - that year when, no matter how long you teach, you will always remember those kids, where they sat, what they did... Ralph was in the 3rd grade that year. He was not an outstanding artist, not the class clown, or the kind of kid you had to give "that LOOK" to... but he had Something. I was not able to define what that was - still can't, but in the course of my 38 year career, I have been so blessed to have had a few kids with that Something. They didn't all become big shot politicians, but they all became FINE men and women- people to be proud of. I confess, having had and lost 2 boys, I paid more attention to my boys than my girls in school, and especially in that age bracket, always wondering if mine would have been like this kid or that...........
My pride in Ralph is not exactly politically oriented, tho I am proud of his beliefs and the stands he has taken in his political career... but it is as a doctor where he so greatly shines in the hearts of so many here. This article does not begin to give him the credit he deserves - he does not seek publicity or fame. He is often very understated, even underrated. Humble. My kind of guy. He does tons of pro-bono work, flies out to Tangier, for example, to care for kids when they come home from CHKD. No one mentions the stuff he does like that, and that is the way he wants it.
Check him out here. Ya gotta love this guy.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/ralph-northam-vas-low-key-lieutenant-governor-juggles-politics-and-pediatrics/2014/07/27/9bfcbf72-fd7f-11e3-8176-f2c941cf35f1_story.html
