I have this amazing friend, who I admire very much. Maybe it is because we share a lot in common, or maybe it is because we are married to best friends, and our life journey with them has been quite an experience and we can relate to one another because of our husbands similarities. Nevertheless, I respect this person, and as long as I’ve been married to my husband, she has been in my world and with me through the ups and downs.
When we first got married, the four of us had a great life! We were inseparable and had tons in common. Our husbands coached hockey and baseball together, I coached gymnastics, and she coached woman’s hockey and field hockey. We all loved sports. My husband and I were married three years before we decided to settle down and have a family and of course, our family came only three months after our Besties started a family of their own.
We would still hang out all the time, but life started to get in the way a bit. When we finally would get together, the two of us would admit that we chose the best fathers for our children. Then we would joke and say, they might not be the best husbands, because we really were convinced they loved each other more than they loved their wives, but they were stand up fathers! Undeniably!
Time has ticked away and now we both have more than one child and they are all different ages, have different interests, into a multitude of sports and life is really getting in the way of the four of us hanging out like we used to. Still, we keep in touch and try to get together when our schedules permit, but sadly this isn’t as often as we would like.
Thank goodness for Facebook, because I can keep track of her and her family on there. They are a busy family, just like ourselves, and the other day she was in Boston with her daughter for hockey, and posted a status update about how she was surprised when her husband showed up in Boston and surprised her and her daughter because he wasn’t supposed to come.
Instantly I was brought back to our lives many years ago, on how we would joke that they may not be the best of husband, but the two of them are the best dads in the world! I had to make this comment on her status.
How many of you feel the same about your husband? They may not be the best husband, but man-oh-man, they are the best fathers that you could have ever chose for your children. How many of us take for granted all that these incredible men do to help make the family work. They might not be skilled at organizing, or keeping the cleanest of homes, but when it comes to being a father, they know exactly what to say, what to do, when to do it, how to say it, and when to say it. They are just naturals!
Ephesians 5:33 says, “However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” Respecting your husband includes honoring them as the father of your children. Realize that the two of you were joined together for a reason, and that was to produce the off springs that you were so graciously blessed with. These children are meant to be in this world and have a purpose to fulfill. As their parent, you are to respect their fathers and realize they have something to give the child that a mom just can’t.
Instead of being the criticizing women that we are created to be, give thanks and praise to your deserving husband or father of your children on this special weekend that is dedicated to all the great fathers in this world. They might not be the dream husband that you thought they were going to be when you married them, but they are the father of your children and they should be respected and honored for the job that they do. Even if they may not do things the way you like things done. Children always love their father, so why not embrace it and love them for giving you the children that you’ve been blessed with. You couldn’t have made your amazing children without their help!
Happy Father’s Day!