With an endless supply of negativity and divisiveness packed into every news cycle these days, sometimes it's cathartic and uplifting to totally change pace. Thus, I present to you a heart-melting video of a father surprising his nine-year-old son with baseball tickets as a reward for his complaint-free hard work around their family farm in Indiana. Come for the kid immediately and gamely agreeing to a mysterious all-day task, which his father hints could be yet more work; stay for the big reveal, which results in the young baseball fan uncontrollably sobbing with joy as he realizes what's in store. If this doesn't make you smile, you might need to check your pulse:
9-year-old Cubs fan breaks down in tears when his father rewards him with tickets for hard work on family's farm. https://t.co/Rzr0IQ2VvQ pic.twitter.com/GNrtosXCWG
— ABC News (@ABC) April 19, 2017
As this clip began to make the rounds (how could it not?), author Molly Knight tweeted at the Cubs, suggesting that perhaps an opportunity to make this kid's day even more special was in the offing. The MLB franchise's one-word reply:
@molly_knight @ABC Yeah.
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) April 19, 2017
And sure enough, were they really were on it. Cubs slugger Anthony Rizzo delivered the news:
This is awesome. When u come for the game Kolt I'll have BP passes waiting for you. No better place to see the @Cubs then right on the field https://t.co/P7Ma2p4MUh
— Anthony Rizzo (@ARizzo44) April 20, 2017
Amid all the sorrow and strife in the world, do your heart a favor and take the the time to really enjoy the innocence and happiness of a young fan, a caring dad, a dream come true, and a ball club going out of its way to add to the memory. It might just be enough to get even a hardened St. Louis Cardinals fan to hum a bar or two of 'Go Cubs Go.' Until the first pitch, that is.