Fatherhood

As a father, I need to teach my son that an investment in goodness will never fail him in life. I have learned to invest in the goodness of my wife, my children, and our extended family and friends. The once colorful connotation of the word "good" has been bleached out in a culture where we divide shades of gray and define things absolutely. Good in today's terminology is a good spot in line at the grocery store, behind better and best. The good computer only takes a few minutes to load and we might have to wait thirty seconds to access the Internet ... no smartphone in this category. I always remember Gods assessments of the world he made, "And God saw that it was good." This statement was made over and over again as he stopped to ponder his glorious creation. And finally, he stated, "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good." God's own creations are good ... very good, and that is enough for me. An investmen...

... to be Fathers? My parents say that Patrick has us very well trained ... and he well might. He lifts his arms and we lift him up.  He points and we carry him in the direction he wants to go.  He throws something, we give it back for him to throw again. Parents that know us roll their eyes (some unspoken knowledge, I expect). I suspect they are laughing with us ... As we teach him how to live life ... to love God, respect his family, and to be a productive member of society ... he is teaching us about life, as well.  What those lessons are, I'm not one hundred percent sure, but I am certain they will be valuable to me in my future endeavors.

God blessed this Country, and through our commitment to him our Country will never fail. I have not had the chance to take my son to a Fourth of July Parade yet ... and at fourteen months, most likely he is not going to remember much. I am a strong patriot ... proud of my Country and it's history. Patrick needs to learn about the history that makes our Country great as well as the patriotism and respect is engenders. What can I do as a father to teach these lessons? I need to teach some lessons to him ... and others, I will teach him by the example I provide.  Here are just a few things I have been thinking about over the last few weeks that I need to remember over the next few years. Patriotic Events: This is not just Fourth of July events, but local and state events. Patrick needs to see the pride I have in my Country and all aspects of what make this Country great. Having been involved with the US Army, and in particular with Recruiting Command, I have a g...

For those that have been enjoying the humor in my posts ... sorry, this one's more serious. I've been thinking about what I need to do, as Patrick's father, when he gets older and transitions into a young adult, then to manhood. I need to be a role model .  It is my firm suspicion that there nothing more important to raising a responsible young man than modeling the behavior I hope he will embrace when he becomes a man.  Patrick will learn more from watching how I react and behave in given circumstances than he will from almost anything I tell him.  Jen pointed out the other day that I can get quite irritable with other drivers ... to the point of getting vocal (yes, I can yell and scream at times).  I definitely need to change that type of behavior, before he learns it from me. I need to teach him how to  properly  plan for the future .  Too many men go through life just reacting to what is happening around them ... I know I spent a lot o...