Day 41

Any fool can Father a child, but it takes a real man to be someone's Daddy.

Today proved to be our most difficult yet.  The strongest of us would break this day and we would all suffer greatly.  The 8 year old . . . stoic, graceful and wise beyond his years.  The only of us to maintain his head throughout this difficult transition.  This is a young man that can carry the weight of the world on his shoulders without a wimper or a whine.  This transition finally found the weakness in his armour and he too began to bleed.  As a father, there are times to be strong and demand the same of your children, and then there are times when you must cry their tears for their soul must know you understand their plight.  I have failed as much as I have succeeded in life.  I believe this fact has made me a very strong individual with a heart like a nine pound hammer.  Traditionally I demand the most out of my kids and would show them no sign of weakness or hesitation in my actions.  Today my eldest needed to know his Daddy was human and understood what he was going through.  His mother and I both dropped our guards this evening so that he would understand that his feelings of loss and sorrow were felt by us all and that tomorrow would be a better day.

After an evening of soul searching and our fair share of tears in both sorrow and joy, we found a renewed appreciation for life and for each other.  If nothing else, this experience will certainly draw us closer as a family.  What more could you ask for in life?  This, on its own, was worth the price of admission.  I feel that nothing more can be said for this day.  We are a family with hopes and dreams of tomorrow.  We are an unyielding force that can make it through whatever life throws at us.  Jack has been beaten and Jack has been drowned, but Jack will never give in.  Until tomorrow.