If you are a man, I’m sure you’ve reflected on the men who influenced your life. We automatically think of dads, of course, who have such profound and critical importance in not only the development of children, but continue to provide us with wisdom and role models as we age and face the challenges of life.
Las week I witnessed a small, almost unnoticeable incident that illustrated this for me again, and made me think a lot about it this past week.
I am homeschooling my autistic grandson for the third year. My husband is retired now, and often helps out, which has been great for the little guy. Last year when he was studying work, energy, levers, wedges, etc. in his science class, there was a lot of time in the garage using things like a hammer and nail, drill and screws, to illustrate the lessons.
Last week I took him to the track and playground for exercise. He used to love the playground, and was adventurous, but at nine, he’s decided he’s too old. I told him he has to play, or do exercise videos. Very reluctantly, he decided to put minimal effort into the climbing wall, swings, ladders, and other equipment there. My encouragement had no influence.
The next day, my husband was able to come with us. The grandson was a different boy, simply due to the presence of his grandfather. He threw himself into things, and even attempted crossing the hand over hand bars, which he was unable to do, but made a few swings. My husband explained to him that he would easily be able to do this, and other activities, by the end of the year.
I suspect several things happened here. Just the presence of a strong, respected man made Conner feel safe. Perhaps he also felt it important to make an effort to impress his grandfather, or be more like him. And undeniably, as my husband walked beside him and encouraged him to step off the safe platform and swing out into the air, he needed the security of a strong man he trusted, not holding him, but just there.
We fight battles politically, economically, and using our influence to change minds. But this is how we win.
As you go about your day, a simple action like this will change the world more than all the other things. Be there for a kid, whenever you can.
Lovely. God bless you all!
Pretty Cool. I have 8 Grandsons, the oldest is a Paratrooper in Alaska. Never much thought about the influence a man might have. I’m going to keep an eye out next time I’m with them. Excellent post Ma’am!!
By GOD’s almighty grace/mercy all 4 of my grandsons are living w/their fathers. 2 boys (adopted by my son,
1 boy (from another mother) raised by my eldest daughter (common law married), 1 biological grandson raised by my youngest daughter and her husband who had him naturally.
God hath blessed me among many great men from my grandfather, uncles, cousins, to my father, the man I’m with, 4 brothers, my son and sons-in-law! Yet, am humbled by HIS almighty plan, ME (tears flowing…
Yesterday I saw a man and father turn his attention to our children and their health. All the good examples in the world won’t do much good if our children are injured through poisonous food and poisonous vaccines.
RFKJr, and by extension, PDJT, want to bring this calamitous assault upon the heath of our children, and all citizens, to an end.
Turning the hearts of fathers to the hearts of their children is a prerequisite for God’s blessing upon a nation. PDJT and RFKJR are leading the way for all men, for all of US.
I think RFKJR said in his 1st speech that 77% of American youth aren’t healthy enough to serve in our military. I was observing the wreckage around me and telling any foreign born to look – if they stay whatever this is could happen to you and yours. Never heard confirmation from anyone like RFKJR just did. Why so many in position to really know stay silent for so long? Pediatricians? Doctors in general have to know yet they do nothing. So evil.
No matter how involved and helpful and loving a woman is to a child, she cannot be a man. Sometimes boys need to see a real live man in front of them, to copy.
I could not agree more, being the mother of three sons. I did many important things in their life, but they needed a good, strong father to teach them how to be a man.
And a masculine man doesn’t hurt.
That’s right!!
yes, a male figure is always a good thing
WHAT?! You mean they are not toxic?
Bravo!!!
I told my grandkids that I was going to show them a magic trick…I put their video divices in cabinet over the refrigerator. Thy disappeared jut like that. Next we went to the barn, saddled up the pony and. watched the real magic.
It wasn’t me… it was my lord and savior alowing me to be apart of life.
Very funny! Thanks for fighting the war with an irresistable weapon….a pony!!
That is an excellent example of how little things inspire our little ones to achieve…
“Perhaps he also felt it important to make an effort to impress his grandfather, or be more like him. And undeniably, as my husband walked beside him and encouraged him to step off the safe platform and swing out into the air, he needed the security of a strong man he trusted, not holding him, but just there.”
Boys need fathers and grandfathers desperately. This is a sweet picture. Thank you.
Our Grandfather raised us three boys ( now men in their sixties) without his incredible strength, and integrity we may have been in real trouble.
He went back to work at 63 to feed and provide for us, what a man.
What a memory..
“ Memories over money” every time.
Cheers!
Your comment made me cry. I lost my dad at a very young age, 6, and thank G-d, was blessed with the greatest Grandpa in the world! He raised me and my brother on his farm, a priceless experience. To me he was bigger than John Wayne.
There’s a song by Riley Green called “I Wish Grandpas Never Died.” That sums up my feelings pretty darn well.
Cheers from Oklahoma!
Thank you! 😪
So glad you had a wonderful grandpa!!
After some unforeseen circumstances, I ended up raising my two boys by myself. It was one of the hardest jobs I ever had, but I would do it again! Now my oldest has his own company with about 20 workers and my youngest retired from the Army and does classified stuff! And now , every day one or both either text me or call! I consider myself a Very Lucky Man!
You are more than lucky. You are the master of your own circumstances and raised them to be men without a wife….hard to do but as you say worth every minute. Bless you.
👍
My Two Sons was a television series. My own two sons have been a blessing. They are old men now (69 and 64) but still close. Only one grandson, but he is loved as well.
And don’t forget the girls.!
Still working, at a sawmill at 69. Hopefully my kids and my granddaughter are noticing.
Awesome!
And uncles. My uncle Lewis was my idol. Played baseball an football for a local college. First one in our family to get an actual college degree. He once told me that I should never smoke cigarettes if I wanted to be an athlete. Damn good advice, even though my athletic efforts were limitrd to somewhere between piddlng and middling. Still have good lungs!
Love this post.
Really love this post!
Wonderful article and so true!
Yes and men need to be reminded that it’s okay to be a real man. IMO, they are getting a bad rap these days.
True words of wisdom.
I can’t believe that we are suddenly a society filled with emotionally damaged young people just because of their exposure to TV, mo it’s, video games, social media, vaccines, ultra processed foods, etc.
Something else has transpired to alter our children.
There have always been abyssimally bad parents…addicts, abusers, absent. In some cases other family members or responsible adults step in to support and guide children caught in these situations. But what we are seeing now is hard for me to understand.
Children are not being taught to think, reason, question. They are given trophies for existing, but not asked or required to be a contributing member of their family or society. They have “influencers” as role models, not achievers.
Parenting is hard. Families break up, reassemble, and suffer tragedy. Our children need us, and not as “helicopter parents” but as guides and examples of a morally driven life.
Those early years are so important.
Men and women bring different things to their children and both are important. When we deny the differences, we deny our children the opportunity to embrace the strengths of both.
‘They have “influencers” as role models, not achievers.”
^^^
This!
Sorry. Just noticed. “movies, video games…”
We have “emotionally damaged young people” who are also spiritually damaged.
The cause is not any one or two of those technically advanced items that you listed, but it is the combination of all of them ALONG with a rapid decline in faith-based values and morals in a large percentage of families….an increasing number of which are themselves split apart.
The assault on the traditional family has been prosecuted via a steady but persistent push of immorality and self-centered pursuits from those “authorities” in our culture (primarily the entertainment industry and academia) who had traditionally been tasked with and expected to provide wisdom and guidance to maintain a cohesive and peaceful society.
But the Marxists figured out that changing the messaging coming from those two cultural sources of influence could break down society and render the people vulnerable to divisive ideas. So they did and here we are.
All true, but it worked because parents abdicated their oversight, judgement, and responsibility. Just like American citizens are in the position we are in, not because of politicians except by default. Laziness is at the heart of all our problems.
I’m a grandmother of 3 and have watched over the decades the changes in parenting. A good percentage of parents these days are afraid of their children. They do not want to offend them, and since discipline can often be offensive, they buckle. Children then take control in the household and we all know what that leads to. Men and women have huge jobs to do in rearing children. One cannot replace the other. It is God’s way.
Yes. I used “self-centered pursuits” to cover laziness along with everything and anything a parent might choose to self-satisfy. That of course includes doing as little as possible for anyone much less their children.
We witnessed this firsthand when my wife operated a licensed family daycare in our home for several years while our own children were preschool…. Within the first week of taking on a new client, my wife could tell who put their children first versus who put them secondary to the adult desires. It was heartbreaking in some cases yet we could not accuse the adults of abuse under the existing state laws…
My parents did that and I promised myself never to be that way and I haven’t.
👍 👍
Excellent decision, Koo.
Little people learn first from their parents. The unconditional love we have for and show our kids is a lifetime investment with profound, long lasting dividends.
The economic decline has contributed significantly IMHO. The backlash of youth not being work focused is because they watched their parents work really hard and have little to nothing to show for it. Many actually resent their parents for having to work so hard and not being there for them but they also refuse education because of the student loan stress. Some people actually have student loans that never end until they die. The system is set up to where there’s no way to confront this and nobody believes until they encounter others with the same problem.
I was once told by a young father that he and his wife were going to send their children to childcare at a very young age. I asked why he was going to have to do that? He said that they didn’t have to but they figured that the people who worked in childcare were professionals and would do a better job than they could. He was my cousin so I felt the liberty to stand up from the table and say, “I know that child raising can be a daunting process but you are both well able to learn. Also your child will not receive who you are and all that you have to give and teach that only you can do. You are their father and mother. No one can replace you and no one will love your child like you will.” Another old man was sitting at the table…an old family friend…
and he stood up, pounded the table, and said, “Listen to her. She is right. What the hell do you think you are doing?” He fell back into his seat exhausted and I just waited for a response. There was no response. So not only do men and women bring their differences but they both bring their very unique personality, formed and shaped by God, a generational gift of belief, experience, the stories of the family, the relationships with them, the community, the nation, the world and the universe. The family is the first school and the first level of government. The tearing apart of the family is the tearing apart of the nation.
Somehow they are actively being taught against family values. I have been wondering for many years how some ideas get into people’s heads even when they have zero media or relational input.
Thank you Menagerie!!
Lovely,
We have 3 grandsons, and watching the face of a little boy “ light up” when they hear from either of the dads, or me come on boys we are off to do man stuff.
Is like the “MasterCard “
Commercial priceless.
Cheers, and thank you!
My Dad was the best. Playing softball, he was the pitcher for both teams. All girls.
We went to Church every Sunday.
Thank you, God.
You put a smile on my face. 5 kids- 3 boys and twin girls. My Dad was the baseball, football and basketball coach. He was the umpire and referee. And in between he was the cub scout and boy scout leader. All the neighborhood kids, and dogs, would jump in the back of his truck on the way to the field. That’s if there was still room after the home made bench. He spared some time for the girls too. Softball and basketball coach. Oh, and he also brought the Wrigley’s.
Benergy1 isa good youtube follow. He is autistic and has accomplished amazingthings with the helpof a wonderful support system.
Thanks, I’ll check that out.
I was the only one in the family, that my son would allow to pick him up and ‘fly’ him around the living room him, to ‘Danger Zone’. Our female cat plays more aggressively with me, than she does with my wife, especially hunting the lure, though if I tried to pick sleepy dust out of her eyes I’d be in Accident and Emergency faster than the claws that put me there!
The past couple of decades has been a never-ending war on the precepts of natural law, but I have a feeling nature’s beginning to fight back.
Thank you for this post. It gave me a smile to start the day. And yes, you are absolutely correct. Never underestimate the power of YOU on other people.
Mrs. Ausonius often laments about “The War Against Boys,” which is visible throughout the “kulcher.”
The presence of ever more “girly men” on television and on the streets does not help, along with pushing feminine homosexuals to the front as “normal men” at every opportunity.
Shielding young boys from such malign influences is a constant battle, but it must be done!
The lack of male heroes in the kulcher and the culture means that parents, who want a normal son, need to find things like old Tom Swift or Hardy Boys or Tarzan books, or the biographies of famous men by Augusta Stevenson, and need to have decent men interacting with their sons, as “Menagerie” has demonstrated.
The biographies of famous Americans – men and women – by Augusta Stevenson are still in print!
See:
https://www.thriftbooks.com/a/augusta-stevenson/222085/?srsltid=AfmBOopU-o4nVp2SIxkIGdbMUxGfOTw9DtQx00lUnr7XrWXTWYNis0xN
Menagerie: Real men don’t reflect. 🤣
Excuse me!???
something I have noticed lately has really bothered me
where are all the Children that used to play outside?
we used to round up the kids in the neighborhood and
we would play almost any kind of sport at one time or another
ride our bikes, terrorize the neighborhood to keep from being bored.
now you are lucky to see a blue haired kid go by on his electric scooter
with his spongebob backpack
how times have changed
They are all inside on their devices, where they can’t get “hurt” and where their parents always know where they are and what they are doing (although they usually have NO idea what they are watching or who they are talking to)!
Thus, they are growing up fat, lazy, with anxiety, and ZERO problem solving skills!
I cannot in good conscience ridicule all parents who choose to keep their children close to home.
The astronomical increase in child abductions and trafficking has surely been a root cause for the increase in helicopter parenting and indoor electronic “toys” with which the children can amuse themselves. But, instead of interacting with their children or guiding them into healthy activities at home, too many parents themselves are preoccupied with their own electronic toys and other self-centered pursuits.
Children need a male AND female influence in their lives. It provides a much needed balance and understanding to the world.
Mj: The rest of nature understands this and doesn’t have to think about.
Of course they do, but what they’re really missing most is male influence. Even in best case scenarios. We are now involved with a homeschool co-op, but I’ve watched these homeschooled kids in our church for years, because I had nieces and a nephew and their friends who were homeschooled, and we had a lot of involvement with them.
Over 20 years I observed, and I came to the conclusion that the girls almost always fared better than the boys after high school. My sister in law agreed, and it was especially true with her kids. The mothers were almost always teaching, and without the influence of coaches, male teachers, etc., the boys lacked enough male influence , even though they almost all came from two parent homes.
Now I see more dads involved in our co- op, to a small degree, and the kids have a lot more outside activities. Kids need men and women, in balance, as you said. Not only is the male role critical, in and of itself, but a strong, sensible man checks a woman’s often overpowering instincts. I see a lot of well educated, good mothers, sensible, independent, and they very frequently are extremely overprotective of their sons. They do not allow dads to push them as they need to be pushed, to make them take risks, to make them never accept mediocrity.
Not all women do that, of course, but it seems to me that many women just naturally stop their protective actions when dad steps in and pushed the kids. As my story illustrates, sometimes just the presence of a man makes all the difference. If nothing else, boys will always measure themselves against the man who fathers them, be he biological dad or not.
Absolutely. Nurture of a mom is darned near irreplaceable.
Wonderful!! Unfortunately our “progressive”government has been trying to replace the father in all families thru welfare (financial support), abortion/unrestricted sex (relationship control) and public education (development of character and identity). Given the state of our nation currently, they have almost succeeded.
Thank you, Menagerie, for this reminder.
Our daughter had to move back in with us last December, pregnant, (she delivered her little girl in May), with 3 boys ages 5, 4, and 2. It is a rescue. (Her husband is just another child, not supporting any of them to this day).
My husband rolls the boys all over the floor, tossing them, being the “flatten outerer”, as he did with our boys, amid their peals of laughter. One or another will come to me to show their ‘wounds’. “Nana, I got hurt.” I’d look passively at the boo-boo and exclaim how brave they are and to get back to the skirmish. They’d run back to jump on Papa and get squished again.
Our daughter initially was horrified. Her husband never played with them at all. We adopted her at 7 so she never was played with in this way and had missed out seeing her brothers tossed about in the way boys need.
Whenever Papa works around our home, he is continually surrounded by curious little helpers who touch EVERYTHING, having never been trained in proper etiquette or use of tools until now. It’s been a challenge.
The eldest child, now 5, essentially raised his brothers, as our daughter had to work to support everyone while her husband worked, binged, lost jobs…you can imagine.
The eldest, filled with fear and panic at everything when he came here, saw a piece of plywood lying on the lawn. He came to me with slivers and blood. “Nana, I got hurt.” (No screams, panic, or fear, just matter of fact). “What happened?” I calmly asked, looking him over for real damage. “I saw some wood on the ground so I ran and slid on it.” “Oh? Did you learn something from that?” “Yes, I’ve got to try to slide better!” I said that I think your take-away should be that sliding on wood will produce slivers and blood and may be a thing to avoid. We are still chuckling.
By the way, we have begun to call him “Old Blood and Guts” and he loves it. Whenever he gets hurt or scraped, he proudly comes to show us his battle scars. His fearless 4 year old brother we call “Guts and Glory”. Their mother is getting used to all of this.
“Old Blood and Guts”and “Guts and Glory”
Because of what they are experiencing with you and their grandpa today, someday many decades in the future they will earn and proudly wear their own title of “Worlds Best Grandpa”!
It’s often forgotten, but must always be remembered that you are not raising children. You are raising tomorrow’s adults.
I 💕 love you Menagerie. Please stay grounded keep pumping out truth bombs, so refreshing.
I hope to have grandchildren one day. Will keep this within reach and read it often. Thank you!
It’s a small world. My wife and I take care of our 2 grandsons while mom and dad work. The older one is 9 and autistic. He attends public school but my wife and I both realize how innocent and vulnerable he is and wish we were able to home-school him, although my wife’s health isn’t the best and I don’t think DIL would approve anyway. The younger one is just turning 3 and it looks like he might also be autistic. The jury is still out on that. They are beautiful kids, marching to the beat of a different drummer.
We have two autistic grandsons. Conner’s older brother is also autistic.
Most men have a different positive affect on kids especially boys. Maternal affect is different, who knew?
A. Great story and lesson. Thanks for sharing.
A father’s influence, or the influence of a father-like presence, is imperative if we are to rear the next generation of men with chests (per CS Lewis’s famous quote).
It is also essential for daughters so that they know they are loved for themselves, learn the value of self worth and respect, and will therefore be less likely to look for in the world they eventually live in what they did not receive at home.
Evil knows this.
And it is for this reason that its acolytes and enablers have tried, and regrettably succeeded in great part, to diminish and/or remove fathers/strong men from families across this country. The amoral, immoral government which also seeks to remove Christ as the cornerstone of our nation has done the same with families for decades…leading to this moment when we can see what their “success” has wrought.
Fathers are the cornerstones. Grandfathers, too.
God bless the men like your husband, Menagerie, who love and guide their progeny by Christ’s lovingkindness and grace…as He does for all of us, His children.
Father died when I was 3 so didn’t really have a a father However I do know I really looked up to my grandfather who told me so many stories about my father growing up.
As a teacher I have realized how it not just what we say and teach, but what we do.
Anyone else having problems with the site today? I keep getting a “non responsive” message on my desktop…
No problems here.
Nope. Brave is my browser, though, which might have something to do with it. I like it a lot but I’m sure not an expert.
I have Brave as well – it seems to be okay now but things like that always make me concerned (or suspicious), especially when every other page is loading fine!
I got divorced when my two children were very young. Divorce with children is a terrible thing, I’ve lived it and seen too many examples of what it does to children. I raised my children (with help from my mother and sister). Both parents are necessary in my view, but the male figure has to be there, and be a dependable person. I think the male is actually more important then the female.
Divorce is not good. Agreed.
However, I have seen re-marriage to be worse.
Amen!
Well written. It is for this reason that our church has an all male after school program where we teach hunting and survival stuff. It is for this reason that I volunteer to coach baseball. And it is for this reason that we have taken in a troubled youth in the area who has a single mom raising him (profound changes are noticeable in a short period of time).
Boys need men in their life. They need strong men of moral character and guidance. Without it we end up where we are at now as a society.
One of the things God created men for is being the role model for boys. This is an undeniable truth.
Spot on Menagerie. My heart grieves when I see young boys who have no interaction with Godly men
Excellent observation. My ex wife and my current girlfriend both coddled their sons and fought any influence their fathers may have had. Now both of them have their 40 yr. old sons living with them for the rest of their lives.
How true wvet!
I had to constantly stop my wife from doing things for my daughters as they matured and now from doing the same for my grandsons. (my wife is a sweetheart and a great mom…..too great)
If you never let them develop (and failing and trying again is development) then plan on being a full time mom for life
Nice article Menagerie,
I’m a new grandfather and I will be doing for my grandson as your husband has been doing yours.
My son and DIL plan on home schooling and my wife and I will be able to help out with that. I have a design and engineering background, a machine shop in my garage and so math and math projects will be my responsibility. I’m a hunter, fisherman, backpacker, hiker, bushcrafter and explorer and I will pass on everything I know to him. I play the guitar and will teach him music. I’m a DIY guy and will involve him in projects around the home, garden, cars, bikes and boats. I’m not much of a carpenter but we will build a treehouse together.
I have all these plans, I pray that life lets me fulfill them.
My British husband grew up in deprived circumstances in the years immediately after WWII. His father was an an electrical engineer who was a jack of all trades…and master of them all.
He taught my husband all he knew and passed down invaluable wisdom about life as well…his dad was his best friend.
He was a patient teacher…motorbikes, cars, all aspects of building and repairs, everything you are good at.
He raised a strong and accomplished man who has himself been a Godsend for the three of our nine grandchildren who live near to us who out of all of them needed his presence most.
God bless your family.
The joys that await you!!
I pray as well that He will allow you to fulfill your beautiful plans 🙏🏻
I seem to remember praying for this youngster as he approached his first Confession…they grow so fast….and the impact of Grandpa, cannot be understated…God Bless All y’All…and being there for a youngster…it does mean much and often, we don’t find out until much later….and sometimes we don’t find out….He is lucky to have you both so invested in him.
Thank you for your prayers!
The kids across the street from me are 7 and 9. My wife doesn’t like the mom and I understand why. But they just went through a bad divorce and the kids never see the dad. Her son is wild. My son plays with him which my wife isn’t big on. But I make efforts to help the boy and encourage him and give pointers on sports he’s playing. I make sure my son does not get jealous. When he does I reassure him and he’s fine.
But I’m keenly aware, if this wild little boy doesn’t get structure somewhere he will not turn out well. He reminds me a lot of kids I grew up with. The kid takes a shine to me and it’s because his dad isn’t around and I know that. So I’m doing my part. My wife while not a fan, allows it.
We all must do our part.
There was a kid like that in our neighborhood when my boys were growing up. He came to my husband with sick dogs, broken bikes, and other needs.
It happens for a reason. Boys need the men around to figure out how to handle things from humans like themselves. That’s what it boils down to. Their curiosity naturally takes them to their own kind.
Wonderful!!!! Thanks for that. What a great observation.
Very wise observation Menagerie. And ladies both young and older can and should be shining examples of refined women for our daughters. ( I hope that came out right)
There is a famous seen from a Jenny Jones or Ricky Lake show. Where they do a scared straight on little kids that are out of control.
A drill Sargent is screaming in this little boys face about how he’s going to turn out horrible and what not, then shouts “do you want a man like me always screaming in your face” and the little boy says “yes” and starts crying.
The drill sargent breaks down and hugs the kid. And the kid hugs him weeping.
That scene has always stuck with me. Little boys need men in their lives and it’s not up for debate.
Beautifully said. There is no substitute. My father has been gone 50 years now, and it’s a rare day I don’t think of him and the wonderful example he set for us. God bless us all!
I have a 3 yr old grandson diagnosed with autism .
I keep praying they’re wrong.
He made major strides of the last year.
His mother,my daughter is working very hard to detox him from metals and such .
She’s an RN.
He couldn’t have a better mom.
I met a young man once who was in his late teens. As a young child, he’d been diagnosed as severely autistic, along with several other ominous things. His mother, a naturopath with several advanced degrees severely changed his diet. She said it was several years of hell, but between 2 and 3 years later, she saw profound differences. After that, he had no symptoms.
I saw a woman on a segment of a local newscast, a medical segment.
She had a school-age autistic son. Her school’s policy was to call a parent to come and get the child if the child was acting out disruptively.
The woman placed her son on an elimination diet for reasons unrelated to behavior.
She used to get frequent calls to come and get her unruly son. During the time period he was on the diet the calls dropped to one or two a month.
Thank you for posting this. I find it encouraging as a grandfather of an 8 year old who does not have a Dad in the picture. I make an effort to be there.
Besides the cool subject, the treatment of it, the writing, is superb. So down to Earth that one could read to the end and say, “Well, of course.”
Thank you.
Beautiful story. Too many of our young are missing a caring father or father-figure in their home and even in their life. Much of this is by design from very intentional efforts to undermine the family unit and to reward the single parent.
There you go. There has been an explosion of single parent families in this country enabled by the welfare state.
I’m officially old. Grew up in suburbs of NYC area mostly. In these latter years women I knew from high school contact me wanting to compare lives I suppose and not a single one has or had a husband for their children. I don’t even know how to talk with them and don’t want to.
As someone who lost my dad at he age of nine I can assure you what a tremendous void this has had on my life. Im now almost 64 years old and I still feel this void.
My life changed forever on July 3rd, 1974 at 3pm.
One of my favorite books is “Wild at Heart” by John Eldredge. It illustrates how critical it is for boys to have a man let him know that he “has what it takes”.
Eldridge also has a book entitled Fathered by God which takes it a bit further.
Excellent book for both genders.
OK, I’m still trying to figure out where three years have gone — Conner is three???????? Time flies. Big hug from Uncle Mike in Switzerland!
Mike, Conner is nine! And I’ve never forgotten your kindness and prayers in our trials with his heart, yours and so many other Treepers. God bless you all. I talk to him about how people all over the world prayed for him.
NINE? Oh, great. Makes me feel even older! LOL! Yes, I am getting my years mixed up now as I hurtle towards retirement (in 37 days, 10 hours, 12 minutes, and 54 seconds — who’s counting? Me! I have a countdown clock on my desk). I don’t post as much as usual but I certainly “lurk” a lot on the site. Best regards, Mike