Do you have any doubts about the importance of your role as a parent? Just read the following letter written by an associate of mine: I can still picture my dad bouncing me on his knee, coaching me in Little League, showing me how to shine my shoes, helping me reel in my first fish and telling me stories about his early days as an undercover detective on the Berkeley, California, police force.
I can still hear him saying the words, "Son, I love you." I can imagine him messing my hair, wrestling with me on the living room floor and sharing a hot dog with me at a San Francisco Giants game.
I can still see him puffing up his chest when he talked about me to his friends. He was proud to be my dad. He would do anything for me. I was his son; he was my dad. I was a chip off the old block.
I can still see all of this and much more, but I don't see it in the reservoir of fond memories. Instead, I recall it from an imagination and yearning that wished then and wishes now that it were so. My dad left home when I was three. I never really knew him.
I'm 26 years old. I still miss my dad (even though that's hard to admit). I even cry sometimes when I'm honest with myself about how I feel.
Reading this poignant letter, I couldn't help reflecting on the number of children today who will replay a similar record in their minds. Not just those from broken homes, but those whose parents are absent in other ways.
Email
Facebook
Twitter
Print
Free Newsletters
