Ain't nothin' better than being a daddy
Happy Father’s Day to all the great dads out there.
Being a dad isn’t the easiest thing for a man to do, but it sure is the most rewarding. There is nothing like holding your newborn baby for the first time and knowing that your world is a better place. Great are those moments when your youngster takes those first, precious steps, says their first words, catches a ball, swims across the pool and rides a two-wheel bike for the first time.
Among the joys of fatherhood is hearing “I love you, Daddy,” receiving crayon scribbles on construction paper, the first day of school, fishing on a lazy summer day, mowing the lawn together, wrestling in the living room, pillow fights, bedtime stories and stargazing.
As they grow older, there are the music lessons, athletic events, camps, youth group activities, helping with homework, and training a puppy. There will be hours of playing catch, foot races, playing ball, going to movies and watching sports live or on TV.
The older they get the more important a father’s instruction becomes. There is a special bond between a father and child that is like nothing else on this earth. Finally, they get into high school and college. If your child is athletic, there will come that memorable moment when they make the big play and you swell with pride and relish the moment where all that hard work and dedication has come to fruition. It’s at that moment your child will look at the camera and say “hi, Mom!”
I am blessed with a great and wonderful God, a beautiful and loving wife and four of the best children a guy could ask for. Everything else pales in comparison. I have those things because I have parents who modeled that for me. They led me on the straight and narrow path. And even though I strayed at times, it was through their love, dedication and direction that I have the great family and good life that I do today. The same can be said for my in-laws and their daughter, my beloved Sandy.
I know too many guys who have given up on their families and left for “greener” pastures only to miss out on the greatest experience of their lives. There is little that is more harmful to a child than to have to live without one of their parents, be it through death or divorce. Of those two, divorce is more devastating. Death is something we cannot control. Divorce is the willful desertion of one or both of the parents from the family. It is something that can be controlled. What’s needed is for more men – and women – to take a “we first” attitude toward one another.
Finding true happiness in this life comes not from doing what feels good or in pleasing oneself, but in pleasing and caring for those around you. When the people around you are happy, you too, will share in their joy. And when those people are your wife and children, a guy can’t ask for much more than that.
I screwed up
When I make a mistake, I own up to it. Last week I made a huge mistake. Actually, I made a bunch of them. It’s my lapse in judgment and I take full responsibility and apologize to those affected by it.
In the interest of integrity and serving as a government watchdog – which is a mantra of this profession – I published a list of public officials who are behind on their taxes. For the most part, I was right on. I should, however, have thoroughly vetted the information I had and I failed to do so. That reflects negatively on my own integrity, the integrity of this newspaper and the integrity of those wrongly named.
I should have contacted everyone on the list first to verify that I had the right people and to offer them a chance to tell their side of the story. I did with the ones I could find, but I didn’t with all. That meant that fine people like Johnny Johnson of the Hempstead ISD Board of Trustees and Joe Garcia of the Royal ISD Board of Trustees got mixed up with their namesakes. It also meant that people like Brookshire City Judge Karl Micklitz, who is on a quarterly payment system, and Monaville Fire Chief Dan Easter, who is in the process of refinancing, were listed as delinquent when they had legitimate reasons.
To each of those who were wrongly affected by my errors, I humbly and sincerely apologize.
Being a dad isn’t the easiest thing for a man to do, but it sure is the most rewarding. There is nothing like holding your newborn baby for the first time and knowing that your world is a better place. Great are those moments when your youngster takes those first, precious steps, says their first words, catches a ball, swims across the pool and rides a two-wheel bike for the first time.
Among the joys of fatherhood is hearing “I love you, Daddy,” receiving crayon scribbles on construction paper, the first day of school, fishing on a lazy summer day, mowing the lawn together, wrestling in the living room, pillow fights, bedtime stories and stargazing.
As they grow older, there are the music lessons, athletic events, camps, youth group activities, helping with homework, and training a puppy. There will be hours of playing catch, foot races, playing ball, going to movies and watching sports live or on TV.
The older they get the more important a father’s instruction becomes. There is a special bond between a father and child that is like nothing else on this earth. Finally, they get into high school and college. If your child is athletic, there will come that memorable moment when they make the big play and you swell with pride and relish the moment where all that hard work and dedication has come to fruition. It’s at that moment your child will look at the camera and say “hi, Mom!”
I am blessed with a great and wonderful God, a beautiful and loving wife and four of the best children a guy could ask for. Everything else pales in comparison. I have those things because I have parents who modeled that for me. They led me on the straight and narrow path. And even though I strayed at times, it was through their love, dedication and direction that I have the great family and good life that I do today. The same can be said for my in-laws and their daughter, my beloved Sandy.
I know too many guys who have given up on their families and left for “greener” pastures only to miss out on the greatest experience of their lives. There is little that is more harmful to a child than to have to live without one of their parents, be it through death or divorce. Of those two, divorce is more devastating. Death is something we cannot control. Divorce is the willful desertion of one or both of the parents from the family. It is something that can be controlled. What’s needed is for more men – and women – to take a “we first” attitude toward one another.
Finding true happiness in this life comes not from doing what feels good or in pleasing oneself, but in pleasing and caring for those around you. When the people around you are happy, you too, will share in their joy. And when those people are your wife and children, a guy can’t ask for much more than that.
I screwed up
When I make a mistake, I own up to it. Last week I made a huge mistake. Actually, I made a bunch of them. It’s my lapse in judgment and I take full responsibility and apologize to those affected by it.
In the interest of integrity and serving as a government watchdog – which is a mantra of this profession – I published a list of public officials who are behind on their taxes. For the most part, I was right on. I should, however, have thoroughly vetted the information I had and I failed to do so. That reflects negatively on my own integrity, the integrity of this newspaper and the integrity of those wrongly named.
I should have contacted everyone on the list first to verify that I had the right people and to offer them a chance to tell their side of the story. I did with the ones I could find, but I didn’t with all. That meant that fine people like Johnny Johnson of the Hempstead ISD Board of Trustees and Joe Garcia of the Royal ISD Board of Trustees got mixed up with their namesakes. It also meant that people like Brookshire City Judge Karl Micklitz, who is on a quarterly payment system, and Monaville Fire Chief Dan Easter, who is in the process of refinancing, were listed as delinquent when they had legitimate reasons.
To each of those who were wrongly affected by my errors, I humbly and sincerely apologize.
posted by Joe Southern | 9:09 AM
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