Influence of Fathers

I was settled down for another episode of  "Undercover Boss" and started noticing a trend on this show, which was, how much people speak of their Fathers.  Some of these men were moved to tears just thinking of dear old Dad.  Then I started to think about other reality based shows, where people can speak from their hearts.  Guess what they speak of?  Yup, their Fathers.

What was really amazing is that it doesn't seem to matter how dastardly their Father was, or how admirable...These men's lives were directly influenced by the actions of their Fathers.  They all seemed to want to prove something to their Fathers, although most of them had lost their Fathers years ago.  Their Father's influence on their lives had not diminished at all!  It also seemed that the older the men were, the more they reflected on their Fathers,  They finally got to see life from their Father's eyes.

I have often cringed with how Fathers are represented on television, usually stupid, inept, far inferior to their wives.  They need molded and changed by women to prevent them from a life of their own stupidity.  I have known all along it was not the case, but can't help but wonder if part of the problem in this country is the fact that we present Fathers in such a terrible light on television.

We really need to repaint our picture of Fatherhood.  A Father's love, and work ethic and attitude on life will impact a child throughout their lives.  My generation did not get to see their "Dad" much.  He was expected to go to work, and not get involved in the trivial family matters.  Mom took care of the day to day things.  He wasn't encouraged to show emotions, but rather "take care of things."  Maybe it was this absence that caused us to miss how very important he was.

I lost my Father when I was only 16.  I never lost his impact on my life.

It is funny how that works out.