A Father's Son

Ian has increasingly grown emotional.  Wednesday, before I left, Ian must have reminded me 10,000 times that I must give him a hug and a kiss before I left.  "Don't forget to give me a hug and a kiss before you leave."  Those words, oft repeated, are imprinted in my brain. And what a fine imprint!  He is also the first to make sure that I kiss him good-bye every day before work and he insists I pass those blessings along to his sisters as well--sometimes twice. 

So often, people downplay or minimize emotionality in boys.  We don't want them to be feelers.  We expect them to be "strong", whatever that means.  The older I get though, the more I learn that true masculinity includes an emotional side.  Jesus wept. Jesus experienced sorrow.  Jesus felt hope. Jesus became angry.  Jesus is the definition of true masculinity, and he was emotional. 

I cherish the emotions of my children.  I am increasingly learning that even the negative ones can serve a purpose and that as a father, I need to learn to respond to those with grace as well, rather than with irritation.  Christian parenting is not about creating automatons, but loving our children and encouraging their passionate emotions, reminding them that God created them as passionate, emotional creatures. 

May we all have a passionate love for God, deep sorrow over losses, and appropriate anger. May we all have a heart after God, who created us to feel.