Wrestling: A Wonderful Father and Son Pastime

It's funny how the WWE can instantly hook a child's imagination. Some of my earliest memories as a child were waking up on Saturday morning in my feety pajamas, getting a bowl of cereal and watching WWF Superstars.

I started out as a Hulkamaniac, but I was quickly amazed by the speed and talent of The Rockers—I've been a WWE fan ever since.

Now, many years later, I'm a father of a two-year-old, who I named Shawn in honor of my all-time favorite wrestler—Shawn Michaels.

Last night, we had dinner with my mother, who had just gotten back from a trip she had taken. She had bought my son a Transformer toy (he loves Optimus Prime) and had bought me a Chris Jericho and John Cena figure (in honor of me meeting Jericho the previous weekend).

Well, my son quickly stole the two WWE figures and fell in love with them. Instead of calling them wrestlers, he referred to them as "muscles." But because of my influence, he at least knew who Jericho was. I'm proud to report that in the mock matches he conducted last night, Jericho always came out on top of Cena.

On the drive home from my mother's, Shawn kept telling me that he wanted to watch "muscles" when we got home. Thank God it was Monday—I don't normally DVR RAW.

We got home right at nine and I turned on USA for my son to watch his very first WWE program, even though it was past his bedtime.

He was instantly hooked. 

He enjoyed Triple H's promo and as I walked into the living room from letting my dogs out back I saw him mimicking Evan Bourne's in-ring pose.

I couldn't have been a prouder papa had he spontaneously decided to give me some Sweet Chin Music.

With my favorite childhood wrestlers no longer in the ring, it seemed my fandom was ending. Fortunately, my son's newfound love for the WWE will at least keep me a casual fan for years to come.