So yesterday was Father’s Day. And a good one at that.
My family and I went to a pool party to celebrate. There were families everywhere, cooking, drinking, swimming, playing games. At one point I stopped and just slowly looked around to take it all in.
What I saw were dads engaged with their kids. Baseball, games, swimming—you name it they were doing it with their kids. Keep in mind this was happening during a cookout when it could have been so very easy for dads to go off in a corner by the cooler, slam back some beers and let the women take control.
For the past few years there’s been so much negative attention on dads. Pictures of dead-beat dads in newspapers and on websites who haven’t paid their child support. Talk shows focusing on paternity tests and showing men cheering and dancing when they find out the kid isn’t theirs.
There certainly is a place for some of that to provide strength to women who have to deal with bad men in their lives. But it doesn’t need to be the norm.
More recently, I think that tide is slowly changing. Websites like this are a great example of how men are standing up and starting to bring attention to the millions of men who are strong role models and fathers to their children.
Men are leaving work early so they can make their son’s baseball game. They’re proudly bragging about taking their daughter to the daddy/daughter dance. They’re at the park chasing their kids around while the mom is at home relaxing or spending time with friends.
Fathers are more engaged with their children than they ever have and this will only have a positive impact on our children for the future. It’s a trend I’m so very proud to be a part of.
And I can’t wait to see the effect it has on my children and the eventual parents they will hopefully become.
So, good job dudes. Keep the positive going…and know that you’re literally changing the world.