Important Thing

I have been a quite vicious person myself - I learned vitriol at my Reverend Mother's knee - and I have a very sharp tongue. But I now see kindness as the most important thing in the world. I suppose that's what I'm trying to say in my books." - KAREN ARMSTRONG, religion writer and former nun

I live in Clemens Crossing and am fortunate enough to be able to walk to my Giant. So off I went tonight to get a couple bags of groceries. On my way I passed a Mom and three kids at the tot lot. The little boy called to me from high on the swing. He had just called safely and successfully to a stranger! And then I noticed the two little girls were thrilled because they had just spotted a frog in the creek. On I went to then have a fun discussion with a man I had never met about his beautiful Great Dane.

In retrospect, Kim Snyder says, the signs were obvious: He son didn't speak until age 3 and even then only could pronounce parts of words, like "hay-hay" for Fairhaven Street where they lived.At 4 1/2 , Will Snyder was diagnosed with a reading and language disorder or dyslexia. Its early recognition lead to quick intervention -- daily lessons with a tutor. Three years later, the 7-year-old now reads a year ahead of his grade level."He's a very confident, very ambitious little boy," Snyder says proudly.

To call Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid a "mad dog," as Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank did, is an affront to the canine community and those suffering from legitimate mental illness. Mr. Reid was completely sane when he spread hearsay about an anonymous Bain Capital investor who allegedly told him Mitt Romney paid no taxes for 10 years. Doesn't Mr. Reid, a Mormon like Mr. Romney, subscribe to the prohibition in the Ninth Commandment: "Thou shall not bear false witness"? He appears to pay no political price because he's a Democrat, and unlike Joe McCarthy, to whom some are comparing him, no prominent fellow Democrat or top media figure has asked Mr. Reid the question put to the commie-hunting McCarthy by attorney Joseph Welch in 1953: "Have you no sense of decency, sir?"

On the field: In a scene straight out of spring training, reliever Terry Mathews did some throwing in the bullpen after facing two batters in the seventh inning. Mathews walked Joe Girardi leading off and allowed a single to Rey Sanchez before coming out. Mathews could be seen discussing with bullpen coach Elrod Hendricks where his arm was positioned when throwing.In the dugout: Manager Davey Johnson read the Yankees' lineup card given to him about three hours before the game and noticed that pitcher Hideki Irabu's name didn't appear among the relievers.

Orioles first baseman Randy Milligan left last night's game with the California Angels in the eighth inning with a bruised right shoulder.Milligan was hurt when he fielded a tapper on the infield grass, then dove across the first-base bag to tag out Angels left fielder Luis Polonia.Milligan landed on the shoulder and left the game immediately. He was replaced by David Segui.After the game, Milligan returned to the clubhouse with an ice pack wrapped around his shoulder. He said the shoulder was "a little stiff," but that it shouldn't force him to miss any playing time.

As Worthington Valley residents continued their opposition to a planned treatment facility for juvenile delinquents in their neighborhood, county officials yesterday weighed the residents' request for an administrative order blocking the group home.County officials, who received the request Friday, said they understood the residents' outrage, but the federal Fair Housing Act prohibits them from blocking group homes. An alternative site in the Randallstown area also has been considered by the group home's operator.

AMERICAN LEAGUE Who's hot The Indians are riding a 10-game winning streak, their longest streak in seven years. Who's not The Rangers have lost nine of 10 and 15 of 20. Line of the day Roger Clemens,Yankees starter IP R H BB SO 8 0 4 1 8 NATIONAL LEAGUE Who's hot The Padres' Rickey Hendersonextended his hitting streak to 13 games with two hits. Who's not The Pirateshave dropped eight of their past 11 games. Line of the day Mike Hampton,Rockies starter IP R H BB SO 9 0 7 3 5 AMERICAN LEAGUE "It's very fruastrating for us right now to keep facing a team like that."

On April 8, 2003; LEONA MARIA (nee Lahe) of Fallston, MD; beloved wife of Stephen A. Zahurak and devoted mother of Marianna and John Zahurak. Born November 12, 1932 in Baltimore, MD. She was the only child of Karl and Meta Lahe. After graduating from Towson State Teachers College, Leona taught at the Montebello and Youths Benefit Elementary Schools. On October 22, 1960 she married Stephen Zahurak and they moved to Fallston to raise their two children. Her family was the most important thing in her life and there was no obstacle to great to over come when it came to doing what was best for them, including her own chronic asthma.

Q. My 10 1/2 -month-old son has been crawling for three weeks and has started to get into things.I tell him "no" firmly and move him away, but he comes back. I smack his little hand and say "no," but he laughs.How do I make him take me seriously? He's so little, but I believe he can understand me.A. Don't expect him to take you seriously. He is working toward his own independence.You are feeling as if your job is to control your son and his explorations. You can't - and you are just setting up provocative behavior between you. Save your "discipline" for important things.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation Executive Director Alison Prost mentioedn some good ideas in her recent op-ed, but what's more important is what she didn't say ("New pollution regulations aren't enough for the Chesapeake Bay," July 15). She didn't mention, for example, that the bay's poor condition is partly due to the timid recommendations the foundation has been issuing for 45 years, like buying local meat and planting bay-friendly landscapes, which produce only cosmetic reductions in pollutants.

So who doesn't want to go to the White House? Don't ask that question in the NASCAR garage. You might get an indignant stare. Or a lot of lip from a driver who thinks you have labeled him a Communist. A silly "controversy" is brewing because several drivers have declined an invite from President Obama to visit the White House on Wednesdayto honor the 12 drivers who made the 2010 Chase for the Championship. Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick have declined, citing scheduling conflicts.

The agreement today between House and Senate negotiators over changes to Maryland state worker pension and retiree health benefits is probably the most significant step the governor and legislature have taken this year to shore up the state's long-term fiscal health. Maryland's pension system is underfunded by $19 billion, and retiree health care benefits by $16 billion. The annual costs to the state to maintain those benefits are skyrocketing, and proposing reforms was the most important — and politically risky — thing Gov. Martin O'Malley did this year.

When comedian Demetri Martin lived in New York, he liked to talk with his friends and fellow comedians about the idea of a body of work. Surveying the national comedy scene, Martin would see comics who were hugely popular, but he didn't think were all that funny, as well as hilarious comics toiling in obscurity. Martin felt the right way to put things in perspective wasn't to judge them based on success alone but all the work they'd done in their lifetime. "It always seemed that if you thought about the body of work, that was the best way to stay on track," Martin said.

T he typical script for events like yesterday's, when Mayor Sheila Dixon announced that she would resign from office as part of a plea deal that concludes the years-long investigation into her activities at City Hall, would be to call it a sad day for Baltimore. Tellingly, that was not the word her colleagues used in their carefully calibrated statements. Instead, the word of the day was "difficult," and that seems appropriate. Yesterday was not a sad day for Baltimore. The sad days were the ones when Mayor Dixon took gift cards meant for the poor and spent them on herself, or went on lavish romantic getaways with a developer whose projects she helped award millions in tax breaks.

Charity isn't enough to help the homeless We empathize with the challenges faced by St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in working with well-intentioned members of the community to end homelessness, and the reflections some church leaders offered in "The challenge of charity" (Commentary, Jan. 30) illustrate the limits of charity, the promise of social justice and the importance of pursuing both. Three years ago, in collaboration with the city, we helped more than two dozen people leave St. Vincent Park and move into permanent housing.

Authorities are investigating the fatal shooting of a niece of Representative Beverly B. Byron, D-Md.-6th, Monday night in Southeast Washington.Melissa Byron Golden, 35, of Bowie, was pronounced dead at D.C. General Hospital shortly after being found in her car suffering from a single gunshot wound to the head, police said.The shooting occurred on Central Avenue, near the District of Columbia border with Prince George's County. Police refused to provide details of the incident.Representative Byron said last night that her niece was the victim of a robbery attempt as she was driving through Washington.

To the students at Norrisville Elementary School in Harford County, there was nothing abstract about the science they were experimenting with last week.Theories of electricity, light and magnetism may have been at work here, but what the young science students saw was a handmade doorbell they could buzz, a cardboard periscope they could peer through and a shoebox camera that took real photos.An erupting volcano, an orangutan house and dozens of other experiments and research projects helped bring science to life for the students as they shared the results of their endeavors at an all-day science fair Thursday.

Cornel West sits on a bare stage at the Baltimore Museum of Art, bobbing his trademark Afro hard to the voice of Prince. Talk-show host and political commentator Tavis Smiley is beside his scholarly friend, nodding his head with equal exuberance. During a recent listening party in Baltimore, West has put aside his Princeton University classroom for the world of hip-hop music. He is promoting his second album, Never Forget: A Journey of Revelations, at a fundraiser for the Baltimore nonprofit Civic Frame, which uses media arts and intellectual work to encourage civic dialogue and critical thinking about social issues.