lorenzo's letter to his son

I enjoyed reading Lorenzo De Medici's letter to his son Giovanni who became cardinal at age 14 and later became pope. I especially liked what he said that "All the Christian world would prosper if the cardinals were what they ought to be." So true! In fact, the Christian world would prosper if all their leaders tried a bit harder to be a better example. At least that's what I derived from the weekly reading. It seems like a lot of the rebellion was caused because the people were frustrated that the leaders didn't practice what they preached. Lorenzo actually had some good advice and I hope Giovanni tried to live up to it. He told him to lean away from things like silk and jewels and be more into things like books and antiquities. He also said to exercise regularly and eat plain food. The most interesting advice, which he considered his best advice, was to rise early. The bible encourages this too. I know I feel better when I get up early and get things in order but is it really the most important advice a father would have for a son? Who knows.