The Portuguese prime minister offers to babysit

On May 12 and 13, 2017, Portugal celebrated the 100^th anniversary of the Virgin Mary’s apparitions in Fatima, and the canonization of two of the three small shepherds who saw her. Prime Minister Antonio Costa, in anticipation of the importance of the visit, granted an exceptional holiday on Friday, May 12th for officials, in order to allow as many people as possible to participate in the event.

But a generous intention can sometimes turn out to be a poisoned gift for those with family responsibilities who have to work no matter what. Take the case of journalist João Miguel Tavares, of the Publico newspaper, who challenged the head of government in an editorial entitled "Dear Antonio, will you watch our children?"

The journalist explained in his article that he didn’t have a babysitter available to watch his four children. Except that he did not expect Antonio Costa to take him at his word: "He sent a very nice e-mail saying that if it was a problem for me, he would watch my children in the morning!"

In fact, his four kids stayed at the Prime Minister's residence on Friday morning. In the afternoon after his babysitting duty, Antonio Costa went to accompany the Pope.

Translated from the French – Source: Aleteia