Tonight I heard a talk about fathers, who they are, who we think they are, who they ought to be... It made me think about what it means to be a father (like nervously holding a nail while your youngest holds the hammer?). The speaker spoke of his father and the influence he had on him. You could tell he had a great influence on the son.
As my boys have grown, I think of what influence I'm having on my sons...do I do the things I should be doing? Do I do the things they think I should be doing? Are they watching and listening to me when I get mad because some goober cuts me off while I'm driving? Oh, I'm sure they don't--they don't notice those things... ;)
When I think of my own father, there are only distant memories, and very few ones at that. I hope that, had I the chance to spend more time with him, I would have used and appreciated his wisdom and life experiences to help me be all those things we see in fathers and hope we have in ourselves.
Tonight's talk got me thinking. Tomorrow my oldest turns 17. I've held the title of father for 17 years. I can't believe it's been that long...time does truly fly. One thing about the title, though...it's a title I'll always have, something I'll always be.
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