The common counsel is to write about what you know. As the national day of observance draws nigh, it occurs to me that having and being a father may justify my commentary on the subject. I am daily reminded that paternity and fatherhood are not synonymous. Indeed, the ability to impregnate seems to have very little to do with being a father except in the strictest biological sense. This raises the interesting question of whether or not biology is a requisite to fatherhood. I suspect that there are some men—and perhaps women—who are more genuine father figures in the life of a child than the male who donated sperm to the conception. So what makes a good father?
Mary and I are at that stage where our responsibilities of rearing Rachel and Rebecca have pretty well come to an end. It is a relief to realize that I am no longer required to dispense fatherly wisdom that was pretty much ignored anyway. Now comes our time to enjoy the intimate friendship with the adults that grew up before our very eyes; to reap, in a figurative way, the fruit of our labor. I am mindful, however, that taking motherhood and fatherhood seriously during those formative years was critically necessary to reach the point we are now preparing to enjoy. I invite Rachel and Rebecca (and anyone else so inclined) to comment on these and future reflections on what being a good father is all about.
For now, suffice it to say that human parenting—for better or for worse—is not instinctual. It is learned behavior, and so my continuing examination will reasonably focus upon the teachers.
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