As we approach the observance of Fathers Day in the U.S. on Sunday, June 20th, think about all of the “First Time New Fathers,” who now have their first Son or Daughter to care for, in a world of uncertain change.
The past 365 days of tremendous challenge, full of so much emotion and of anticipated joy.
If you have endured having your first child during a Global Pandemic and National Presidential election year, then you might be even more prepared for the next two decades and beyond.
Now that you have this new responsibility of being a Father, you are now on a journey together with your Wife and Son/Daughter, that will be so joyous and yet so full of new found opportunities.
Opportunities to assist your Wife, in ways you never imagined. Opportunities to teach your child new life skills, new valuable knowledge on being polite, respectful, helpful and the valuable experiences to learn for themselves.
To lead by example, may perhaps be one of the most visible ways a new Father can teach their child. Are you present? Do you show your kindness and speak kindly in soothing tones about others?
Remember, that you are only going to have a decade long time window to establish the foundations on who you would aspire your child to become in life.
Then you will encounter your real first challenges with your new Son or Daughter. The day you see him or her replicating something they learned watching or listening to you.
The old “Do as I Say, Not as I Do” saying, will never truly resonate with your new child.
You have only a single opportunity to be their only Father. What model of a Father will you become?
Your future Fatherhood challenges will span across a spectrum of new life opportunities to make a difference.
Will they be the same as they were with your own Father? Or different.
When you have that moment on your Childs second birthday to sing, look at them and say to yourself, “I’ve only got about 15 years left”.
"Who your child will become is still unknown, yet you as a Father will have already set the course for their own destiny."
Will your child have the skills and the foundations in life to succeed on their own?
Will they have the “Mores” and “Folkways” that a young adult will need, in a universe of accelerating change.
Will your work as a model Father, in concert with your Wife and Childs Mother, provide us with another Daughter or Son that we shall all be proud of?
As a Father, you will have no other, more challenging role in life.
How well you succeed, is going to rely upon your ability to be like your own Father. Or perhaps, the opposite in certain ways.
Happy Fathers Day…
