Being a husband and a father
Riding my bike home from work the other day, I started thinking about my family. About being a husband and a father, and how it is, at once, a blessing, a privilege and a promise.
A blessing because each day with my wife and children is a gift. A chance to be a better person. An opportunity to learn and teach, to know and to understand. To be able to daily witness the fragility and briefness of life, and make the most of what you have, now.
A privilege because not everybody is able to be find and hold onto their soulmate. To discover what it means to love somebody else deeply, intimately and passionately. To have the honour of being someone else's. To be given the chance to observe the growth of children as the world around them grows larger with each passing day. Sometimes it's scary, especially the part about letting go, but you do it, and they flourish.
A promise because, although none of us really know what we're doing, we can still make the best attempt possible. Through our family we learn how to put others' needs ahead of our own, as difficult as it may be, because that's how we're meant to live. And in turn, we teach our children to do the same.