Rodin Jean-Baptiste

Becoming a Godfather

In 2012, I became a cousin to my uncle’s second son. I personally never liked babies because they’re so loud and cry my ears out all day. This baby was no different at first. Whenever his mother was not around, he would cry his little heart out. One time we were all in the car, getting ready to baptize him, and his mother got out of the car for a moment and he would not stop the crying. He’s lucky he was a cute baby and we were related to each other because I probably would’ve just left him alone and let him run his little motor until it ran out oil. His moans and cries sounded like he was getting torn apart by a chainsaw.

            Then I got used to my little cousin and he got used to me as well. Every time he saw me, his face would glow and he’d start doing that cute little laugh that babies do. He was as cute as a baby Shih Tzu. At this point he could say some words like hello and my name. He could walk too so we would go walking together. All two feet of him was beginning to become a boy.

            ­­­­­­­Then on Easter of 2012 I became a godfather to my little cousin too. I was only eleven at the time so I did not know what I was doing at all. On the night before Easter we went to the church to talk with the guy who was conducting the baptism.

            “Have you had your first communion yet, Mr. Rodin?” the priest asked.

            “Yes sir.” my uncle and I both lied so we could get him to stop interrogating.

            “No need to lie in the house of the lord,” he said “he would not be so happy with you both.”

            It was weird the way he picked up on our lie so easily. The next day we went to the church and had the baptism done. I was godfather and my cousin was godmother. I got to dunk his head in the water and it was a pretty fun thing to do. When I dunked his head in the water, it leaped in the air. The water made ripples like waves in the ocean. After the baptism, we had a huge family party that was jumping. We had all types of food and family there for us. This party gave some pretty good family memories like my uncle getting drunk and giving all who asked money. My uncle never gave us money unless it was a special occasion or if he was drunk. The party was so loud, you couldn’t even hear yourself think.

            “Now that you are a godfather, you need to be setting a good example for my son and become a role model figure” my aunt and uncle both told me. This came with a lot of pressure, especially for a kid I loved oh so much. The last time I saw my godson was in 2013 because we moved here to Roanoke from Boston. He is four now and will be beginning school soon.

            Looking back on this event in my life I realized that I am a role model for my godson and will be for the rest of his life. I realized that I will need to set a good example for him so he can have someone to look up to while he transitions from a baby to a boy and from a boy to a man. I feel like while I was in Boston I did set a great example for him and gave him someone to look up to even though he was so young at the time.