Am I Doing This Right?

by Chad Jones

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It’s an odd feeling knowing something to be true, but not feeling it is true. I’m 40.  My body tells me so every morning.  The mirror is unrelentingly honest. I am an adult.  I know this to be true.  But AM I an adult?

Most days I feel like life is a test for which I forgot to study.  It’s unsettling, scary even.  But then there are these moments where my son wakes me up in the middle of the night because he’s had a bad dream or my daughter wants to sit down and talk about how to handle a conflict with a friend at school. It is in these moments I know exactly who I am. I’m a dad. I’m a good dad.

I know when to stop what I’m doing to listen. I know when to crack a bad joke. I know when there are teachable moments, and I know when to let those moments go. They are empathetic, smart, hard working kids. Sure, I have–and will–make mistakes, but they love me and I love them. That is unequivocal. Whatever they grow up to do, big or small, they will be equipped with that, and what a comfort it is knowing I played a part in giving them to the world.

Your children need your presence more than your presents.

- Jesse Jackson