The Importance Of Fathers
|
|
There is no doubt that mothers play an all-important leading role in the lives of their children. They are the obvious heroes of child rearing. But what about a father's role? Just how important are the dads of the world compared to the almighty image of mother? My belief is that fathers play just as important a role as mothers. Different, yes. Possibly not as nurturing, not as all-sacrificing but just as important in the developmental and emotional well being of a child.
Dads are the solid foundation of our lives. They are the shore we swim to when our arms and legs feel increasingly tired. They are the strength we rely on as we take our first tentative steps into the world. Dads can be tender, tough, fragile or powerful but they are probably the most uncomplicated love we will ever know.
For daughters, Daddy is the first man they adore ... the first man whose eyes shine with overwhelming amazement when they look at us. He is the first man to fall in love with us.
For sons, Daddy is the idol they first aspire to emulate ... their mirror image of what will be and possibly the only man they will ever feel comfortable loving.
Daddy is the first man who held us, as a loving parent, with a lump in his throat so huge, only the joy of that love could erase the overwhelming pain of choking on unexpected raw emotion. I think when a father holds his newborn baby, he is touched by pure vulnerability for the first time in his adult life, leaving him forever humbled by the unexplained miracles of life.
For mothers, the father of our children is the one person we can trust to watch over our babies as closely as we would. We are secure in the knowledge of their love for our precious offspring. Dad is the only other person in the world as fascinated with every nuance and murmur of our babies. He is the one person on the planet with whom we can indulge our need to brag and carry on about our kid's accomplishments and heartaches ad nauseum ... one who will be just as interested and never yawn in the face of our devotion.
Without dads, we wouldn't be moms. I would like to take the liberty of thanking them from all our hearts for this honor and for being our partners in this business of raising children.
Know how much you are loved and revered, guys! You are our trusted soldiers and we need you more than you will ever realize.
Copyright ? 2000-2004- Rexanne Mancini
About The Author
Rexanne Mancini is the mother of two daughters, Justice and Liberty. She is a novelist, freelance writer and maintains an extensive yet informal parenting and family web site, Rexanne.com. Visit her site for good advice, award-winning Internet holiday pages and some humor to help you cope. Subscribe to her free newsletter, Rexanne's Web Review, for a monthly dose of Rexanne: http://www.rexanne.com/rwr-archives.html
|
|
|
Parenting: The Road I Chose
Tripping over the shoes and toys that seem to clutter my living room floor on a constant basis, just seems to be part of the game of parenting. I realize it doesn't have to be that way. I could spend my time picking up after the little hon-yocks, and scr...(related: Parenting)
Understanding The Report
"No thank you. Don't bother to send me the report about the testing results. I won't understand it...(related: Parenting)
Uses For Dirty Diapers
As the father of a toddler, I am an expert on dirty diapers. I know exactly what to do with them: throw them out!But along comes a New York waste company and a town in California who want me to do something else with my dirty diapers. Like cover my roof with them. Or walk on them. Or build a doghouse with them, perhaps.Does this sound nuts? Well, it's not. In fact, this project just won the world's top happiness award: the 2003 Happy Guy Award (www.The HappyGuy.com).A few months ago, we lived in a "vertical community". When The Little Lady was born, we wanted to expand our home to make room for her, but our neighbors below objected to us digging a basement, and a front porch would have blocked the hall. So we opted to move out t...(related: Parenting)
Raise Your Child To Be A Leader Not A Follower
Your child's leadership skills begin at the family dinner table. In this day of working moms and fast food eating, sitting down together for dinner is sometimes neglected. However, it is often the foundation of family life and should become a treasured tradition.The dining table functions like a corporate meeting, it is where the parents set the family agenda and model both the attitudes and tradit...(related: Parenting)
Guide To Choosing Plush Toys For Children
Many people consider plush toys great for children. They say that plush is a soft material that children love very much and that plush toys are so adorable, that you can't resist them.I agree, but what do doctors have to say about it? Are plush toys the best for children?Plush toys are very popular nowadays. A lot of people believe that plush toys are one of the best child toys.Children th...(related: Parenting)
Breastfeeding, Its My Right
My name is Duncan and I'm 2 years old. I want to thank my Mommy and Daddy for choosing breastmilk as my only food for my first six months. It turned out I had lots of food allergies that lead to ear infections. I would have been a very sick baby if I hadn't gotten the very best food for babies.I loved it when I was little. Mommy was always there to nurse me whenever I was hungry, scared, or just wanted some time with her. If we were ou...(related: Parenting)
Your Big Yellow Bus
The big yellow school bus is coming down my road again. The neighborhood kids seem happy. The dogs are not. The kids are no longer around during the day and Jersey is going to drop a litt...(related: Parenting)
Homeschooling ? Is It Worth It?
Suppose that you rearrange your life to homeschool your child and the experiment fails? You may feel that you've disrupted your life and wasted a year of your child's tim...(related: Parenting)
Responsible Fatherhood - A Unique And Irreplaceable Role!
Something happened the other day that made me feel uneasy.Yet I shouldn't have felt that way!My wife had left for work and I was hanging the washing outto dry. A neighbour from down the way was in his backyarddoing the same. 'Good day for drying', he called. 'Let'shope the rain stays away.'I had to think about what made me uneasy. Then it hit me.Two men hanging out the washing! When I was a kid that would never have happened. That was women's work, after all!And that made me think about the changing role of menandfatherhood.Change is seldom easy, hence the deeply buriedsense of unease - even in someone like me who considershimself an enlightened individual!The image of fatherhood has changed very much in recentyears, hasn't it?We've come a long way from the distant, unemotional,p...(related: Parenting)
Would You Hire This Teacher?
Imagine you were the principal of the school that your child would be attending. Imagine that you were authorized to pick out which teachers to hire.Who would you pick? Let's look at some of the applicants.Would you hire someone to teach your children if she had not graduated from high school or college?Would you want someone to teach your children who used four-letter words pulled directly out of the garbage dump?Would you pick teachers who might drink, smoke pot, or use other illegal drugs in front of the students?<...(related: Parenting)
Americas Public School System --- Brutal And Spartan
The public school system in America has become a dismal failure. But education in many other times and cultures has been quite succes...(related: Parenting)
The Worlds Greatest Dad
You are in the final round of your favorite game show. The category is "Fatherhood". All that stands between you and the grand prize is the answer to this question: "Describe the Wo...(related: Parenting)
The Personality Of A Virgo Child
Your Virgo Baby..August 23 - September 22Virgo children are honest and reliable and usually tidy, although they may have bouts of being disorganised. Quick and alert, your Virgo child can be an excellent mimic, and is likely to be an early talke...(related: Parenting)
site-map - Copyright © 2006 | Contact Webmaster | Baby Care Info | All Rights Reserved. | Parenting