An unexpected parenting lesson from a Mob Boss

Last updated on: July 1, 2015 at 7:32 am by Dave Willis

An unexpected parenting lesson from a Mob Boss 2015-07-01T07:32:43-05:00 Dave Willis

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One of the biggest news stories from this past week came from a very unlikely source. Former Boston Mob Boss, “Whitey” Bulger, spent over a decade as #2 on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list (right behind Osama Bin Laden). The ruthless criminal was linked to countless crimes, but he managed to evade capture until his arrest in 2011 at the age of eighty-one. Johnny Depp will actually be playing Bulger in a movie called “Black Mass” due for release later this year.

Burger was back in the news this week, but for a very unexpected reason. Some high school girls were working on a project in school where they had to do a profile on a leader. They decided to take a different approach and instead of looking at a former president or business leader, they would read out to the Mob Boss. Their intent wasn’t to glorify his crimes, but rather, to hear his perspective. To their surprise, “Whitey” wrote back from his prison cell and his words sent shock waves through the media.

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The Boston Globe shared the letter where Bulger made his first public apology and bluntly stated, “My life was wasted.”

The letter also says,

“My life was wasted and spent foolishly, brought shame + suffering on my parents and siblings and will end soon…Advice is a cheap commodity some seek it from me about crime — I know only one thing for sure — If you want to make crime pay — ‘Go to Law School.’”

Bulger has indeed wasted his life, and his warning is a wakeup call for me as a parent. We live in a world that glorifies power and wealth even when it comes through immoral actions. Our kids (and even ourselves) can easily get seduced by the very things “Whitey” wasted his life pursuing.

We need to teach our kids to choose the right heroes. We need to teach them to follow a path that will help people, and not one that hurts people. We need to instill in them lessons of character so when the temptations of life come, they’ll have the faith and resolve to choose the high road.

I pray that Whitey spends his final days discovering the Grace that Jesus offers to us all, but I pray even more that my kids and yours can learn these lessons early, so they can live a life of purpose instead of a “wasted life.”

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