7-year-old Girl Leaving the Line for Red Sox Autographs to Get One From an Army Reservist Gets Me in Right in the Feels

YouTube – When Makenna Woodburn, 7, spotted a hero at a Boston Red Sox open house, she couldn’t help but ask for an autograph, even though the hero wasn’t a baseball player. Olyvia Russell is in her first year with the Reserves. … Woodburn was waiting in line for signatures from the team when she got out of line and approached the U.S. Army Reservist who had attended the event in her camouflage uniform.

This isn’t the most earth-shaking story you’ll hear today. It’s just a little slice of humanity to give you some glimmer of hope for the future. I’ve seen enough of autograph culture to know it’s not always the human race at its best. I’ve seen grown men shove their way in front of kids waiting at the rope to get autographs at the end of Patriots practices. I went to Rhode Island ComicCon and witnessed hundreds line up hours early and pay 100 bucks to get a signature from Eleven from “Stranger Things.” And I’ve had people wait in line for me to sign copies of my book (>cough< humblebrag >cough cough<). So like I said, autograph lines are rarely the best we have to offer.

But not every line has people like Makenna Woodburn in it. I believe that children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way. And Makenna’s mom seems to be doing a pretty solid job. Now I just need to get this dust out of my eye.