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The Perks of Fatherhood

I don't have much memories of how my father and I bonded when I was young. Due to illness, he passed away when I was just 7 years old. I practically grew up without a 'father image' that could have guided me through my 35 years of existence. Fortunately, I have a Father in heaven who took very good care of me. But, many times I wondered what my life would have been if my biological father was still alive. What would have he felt when I finished my studies with honors? How proud would have he been for all my achievements thus far? Would have he pompously said over and over again that I looked like him?

If what I feel now as a father to two beautiful daughters is a generic feeling to all fathers, then I could safely assume that my dad would have felt the same way. Excited as I was when my first daughter, Monty, said her first word and took her first step. Proud as I am because my daughter, at the age of 2, can already name the rainbow colors, and identify the alphabet from A to Z. Happy as I am because a lot of people say she's pretty and looked more like me than her mom! Indeed, my father would have felt these joys of fatherhood.

We all have moments when we feel like our life is in a plateau, when everything seemed to have become monotonous and routine, and we can't do anything to 'spark' it up. When I was younger and single, I would watch movies or invite friends to go out, to dampen these episodes. It was what I found effective. But now that I am a 'daddy', I'll just play around with my kids and all those 'bad' feelings are gone. I guess that's one of the perks of fatherhood.

Truly, as Kent Netburn said, "Until you have a child of your own... you will never know the joy, the love beyond feeling that resonates in the heart of a father as he looks upon his child. You will never know the sense of honor that makes a man want to be more than he is and to pass something good and hopeful into the hands of his child."








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