“If a child is to keep his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.”
(Rachel Carson)
Tag Archives: Dad
Fathers in today’s modern families can be so many things…
“Fathers in today’s modern families can be so many things.”
Oliver Hudson
From http://www.wrightsmedia.com
“My friends Katie and Scott… are both Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who work full-time. About a year ago, Scott travelled to the East Coast for work. He was starting a late-morning meeting when his phone rang. His team only heard one side of the conversation.
“A sandwich, carrot sticks, a cut-up apple, pretzels, and a cookie,” Scott said. He hung up smiling and explained that his wife was asking what she should put in the kids’ lunch boxes. Everyone laughed. …
There’s an epilogue to their story. Scott went on a trip and discovered that Katie forgot to make the kids’ lunches altogether. She realized her slipup midmorning and solved the problem by having a pizza delivered to the school cafeteria. Their kids were thrilled, but Scott was not. Now when he travels, he packs lunches in advance and leaves notes with specific instructions for his wife…”
From ‘Lean in’ by Sheryl Sandberg
From Lunchbox dad
“The may be an evolutionary basis for one parent knowing better what to put in a child’s lunch. Women who breast-feed are arguable baby’s first lunch box. But even if mothers are more naturally inclined toward nurturing, fathers can match that skill with knowledge and effort…
We overcome biology with consciousness in other areas. For example, storing large amounts of fat was necessary to survive when food was scarce, so we evolved to crave it and consume it when it’s available. But in this era of plenty, we no longer need large amounts of fuel in reserve, so instead of simply giving in to this inclination, we exercise and limit caloric intake.
We use willpower to combat biology, or at least we try. So even if ‘mother knows best’ is rooted in biology, it need not be written in stone. A willing mother and a willing father are all it requires… As women must be more empowered at work, men must be more empowered at home.”
From ‘Lean in’ by Sheryl Sandberg
From Lunchbox dad
From http://www.lunchboxdad.com/
Let’s appreciate such truly amazing dads!
🙂
THE END
Happy Father’s Day to all Wonderful Men :-)
From http://rebro-a-dama.livejournal.com
Fathers are wonderful people
Too little understood,
And we do not sing their praises
As often as we should…
For, somehow, Father seems to be
The man who pays the bills,
While Mother binds up little hurts
And nurses all our ills…
And Father struggles daily
To live up to “HIS IMAGE”
As protector and provider
And “hero or the scrimmage”…
And perhaps that is the reason
We sometimes get the notion,
That Fathers are not subject
To the thing we call emotion,
But if you look inside Dad’s heart,
Where no one else can see
You’ll find he’s sentimental
And as “soft” as he can be…
But he’s so busy every day
In the grueling race of life,
He leaves the sentimental stuff
To his partner and his wife…
But Fathers are just WONDERFUL
In a million different ways,
And they merit loving compliments
And accolade of praise.
From www.fathersdaycelebration.com
Have a wonderful Father’s Day!
Hope your children will appreciate and treasure you every day, not just on Father’s Day.
Related posts:
THE END
Friday Giggle
“Fathers in today’s modern families can be so many things.”
Oliver Hudson
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From http://fishki.net/Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, mentioned in her book “Lean In” that “I have breast-fed two children and noted, at times with great disappointment, that this was simply not something my husband was equipped to do.”Do not despair, dear ladies. Inventiveness of modern dads can overcome even the lack of ‘biological equipment’ 😉Have a good Friday giggle and a wonderful weekend 🙂THE END
Silent Love…
Silent love…. That feels so much like my dad…
My dad was not mute – he simply hardly ever talked. I mean, hardly ever talked about things that really mattered. May be, it was only with me. Probably, it was only because of my gender. No, he did not mind my gender. I suspect he simply did not know how to talk to me, because I was of a different gender. All the gender-based stereotypes did not make it easier for him either.
He probably thought (or was told) that women knew better how to bring up daughters, that women knew better what makes girls happy – after all, they are the same gender, they are from the same planet Venus. I wondered about that sometimes. We seemed to be from very different planets with my mum. In fact, at times it felt like we were from completely different galaxies.
Interestingly enough, it seemed to be obvious to everyone else that I was a true daddy’s daughter from the moment I was born into this world. I looked like him, I saw the world like him, I was quiet like him. Even my hot temper and tendency to over-react or get over-agitated over minor things, I bet, came from him, as well as my rebellious free-thinking mind.
I also never behaved like a ‘typical’ girl. Things that mattered to other girls, like pretty dolls and fancy dresses, were hardly ever touched in my room. Shopping, cooking and girlish chats never interested me either.
In fact, all females in my family were puzzled and not sure what to do with me. My nanna’s announcement on my 30th birthday expressed that frustration so well: “Eureka. Finally I got it – you are simply not a girl. We thought you’ll eventually turn into one once you settle with a family and children. Alas, it only made you worse…”
I could not stop laughing: it took 30 years for the nurture to finally give up on changing my nature…
Though my dad hardly ever talked, I could always feel a very strong invisible bond between us. Looking back I can clearly see now how much he was trying to do for me, quietly, silently, behind the scene, like a true guardian angel. I can clearly see now, how much he influenced me as a person, shaping my nature without forcing me into a stereotypical mold. I can clearly see now how we was trying to give me choices in life – choices to ensure I’ll be happy. I can clearly feel his silent love…
From http://www.dailywaffle.co.uk
THE END
Raising Teen Daughters: Empathy vs Sympathy
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Can we ever understand teenage girls if even such experienced psychologist Nigel Latta openly admitted in his Politically Incorrect Guide to Teenagers, that he “didn’t understand the physics of the Girl-niverse”? “If a boy goes off the rail,” continues Latta, “he generally drinks alcohol, takes some drugs, gets into some petty crime and hits a few people. When girls go off the rails, they have a capacity to create degrees of chaos that are hard to believe. When girls go off the rails, the earth shifts on its axis”.
From http://lifetoheryears.com/50rules
So how can fathers help their daughters to go through that complicated stage in life? How can fathers understand their teenage daughters, those beautiful fairy princesses who suddenly turn into demonic uncontrollable monsters?
A few days ago I came across a story that touched my heart: a story of a father, who not only made an effort to understand his teenage daughter, but possibly rescued his troubled daughter from years of despair and near suicide. This story is provided below.
Photo by SplitShire on Pexels.com
“I know of a couple with three grown children. This is a good family… The father did a good deal of traveling for his work while his daughter and two boys were growing up His relationship with them was sound and safe, but he just wasn’t around very much. Everything was fine until his teenage daughter started having behavioral problems at school and then with the law.
Each time she got in trouble, her anxious, time-conscious father would sit down with her and try to talk through the problem. They would go around on the same issues every time: “I’m too fat, I’m too ugly.” “No, you are not, you’re beautiful to me.” “You have to say that, you’re my dad.” “I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true.” “Yes, you would” “Do you think I’d lie to you?” And the discussion would turn to the question of the father’s honesty. Or he would tell her a story from his own youth, like the one about how he grew up with skinny arms and shoulders and everyone made fun of him. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?” she would say.
Photo by Kat Jayne on Pexels.com
Things would calm down, he’d leave town, and the cycle would start again. He was on a trip when his wife rang him to say their daughter had disappeared. Frantically, he caught a plane home and the family fretted for days while the search went on. At last she turned up in a runaway shelter in another city, and the parents collected her.
That night he and his wife talked things through. “I do not know what to do about her,” he confessed. His wife replied, “You might try listening to her.” “What do you mean? I listen to her constantly.”
His wife gave him a half smile. “Go and listen to her. Don’t talk. Don’t talk. Just listen.”
From http://www.huffingtonpost.com
He sat down with his daughter, who was still silent, and asked her, “Would you like to talk?” She shook her head, but he stayed where he was, silent as well. It was getting dark before she finally spoke. “I just don’t want to live anymore.”
Alarmed, he fought the urge to protest this and said softly, “You don’t want to live anymore.” This was followed by about five minutes of silence – the longest five minutes in his life, he later said.
“I’m just not happy, Dad. I don’t like anything about myself. I want it to be over.”
“You’re not happy at all,” he breathed.
The girl began to cry. In fact, she began to sob intensely, trying to talk at the same time, words flowing like a flood. It was as if a dam had burst. She talked into the early morning hours, he said hardly ten words, and the next day things looked hopeful. Where before he was giving her only sympathy, at last he had discovered empathy.
This was only the first “psychological airing” of many over the next few hard adolescent years, but the young girl is now a woman, calm and confident in herself and her father’s love for her. That he would seek her out, that he would value the outpourings of her heart instead of imposing his version of reality on her, helped give her a robust foundation for life.”
From When tensions are high and confidence is low, when the next step doesn’t look clear at all, when a wall has gone up, try an experiment with empathy.
- Go to the other side and say, “You see things differently. I need to listen to you.”
- Give full attention. Don’t multitask while you’re listening. Don’t judge, evaluate, analyse, advise, toss in your footnotes, critique, or quarrel.
- Be quiet. You don’t have to provide an answer, a verdict, a solution, or a “fix”. Free yourself from all that pressure. Just sit back and listen.
- Speak only to keep the flow going. Say things like “Tell me more,” or “ Go on.”
- Pay close attention to emotions. Affirm feelings.
- Remember, you are listening to a story. When you go to a movie, you don’t interrupt and argue with the story and talk back to the screen. You’re involved, your sense of reality is suspended, you’re almost is a trance.
- Be ready to learn. If you’re open, you’ll gain insights that will lighten up your own mind and complement your own perspective.
- Show some gratitude. It’s a great compliment to be invited into the mind and heart of another human being…”
From “The 3rd alternative” by Stephen R Covey
Related posts:
- Raising Teen Daughters: Tips for Fathers
- There are no perfect fathers, but a father will always love perfectly…
- When a father gives to his son, both laugh, when a son gives to his father, both cry…
- A Little Girl Needs Daddy…
- Giggling your way to your teens
THE END
Dear Daddy
From Daddy’s Love Shoots
I love you round the world,
And back again,
All over the stormy sea.
I love you lots and jelly tots,
I hope that you love me.
I love you up,
I love you down,
I love your smile,
I love your frown,
I’ll love you ’till the end of time,
Oh Daddy I’m so glad you’re mine.
By Pooky H
From Daddy’s Hands
My dad turned 65 a few months ago. Never thought I’d miss him so much after living for 15 years on the other side of the world. He was not perfect, but looking back I do feel glad that he was my dad.
He never read fancy parenting books or followed any fancy parenting theories. He never talked much or explained what he felt or thought – he was a doer, not a talker. He simply was always there for me. He always accepted me and adored me the way I was without imposing any other ‘way’ on me. He always cared about me and made me feel that I mattered.
I wish we lived a bit closer to each other, so that he could simply be here for my children just the way he was there for me…
THE END
