On the occasion of a Sunday in October, the morning finds me plummeting towards a road in the woods. To run. A day removed from my daughter’s 18th birthday, a day that seems impossible but not much different than most other days. 

I’ve never been one of those “kids will totally change you” types. I mean they do but the subtleties are lost in statements like that. Probably it’s a dad thing as we have the luxury of fumbling through our lives while the mothers do the heavy lifting. If that makes you menses get all defensive then I’m likely right. Moms do the work Dads hoist the trophy and declare it a team victory. 

I, for some reason, have been blessed with the ability to not consider the gravity of many things. Thankfully, actual gravity, considers me without me asking. What I mean is while of course I take being a dad seriously, it gets to be a part of me instead of the all of me. Maybe harsh, but true. 

So while I get to claim the victory for raising great kids. My wife and actual kids are the actual MVPs. My wife for thinking of the things I’ve never even thought to consider. My kids for being wiser than the generations before them.  If kids were plants my role would be putting them on a counter by the sink figuring that the water is close enough, and then wondering why they always say they’re thirsty. 

The unfairness of momdom is staggering. Dads waltz in. Make a fart joke, raise their hands triumphant, awash in the chuckles and continue on doing whatever it is we do. Meanwhile mom is planning dentistry and college visits and getting them their DIP-TET. They gotta get their DIP-TET. 

So on the occasion of this Sunday morning, I roll through the West Feliciana hills, doing my own thing, while in a house in the middle of town, my two   mostly well adjusted kids sleep and my wife, drinks coffee and continues the plans that make our world mostly seamless. 

For that Jeanne, I am eternally thankful. 

For my kids, Paige and Ian. Thank you for doing your part in raising yourselves. You are both truly great. 

#hugsanhi5s