Oh, the best conversations sometimes happen in the car! With my family anyway, we are often laughing at something we saw or heard during the day. Other times, we are discussing an event or experience with someone at school or work! Always, especially if my 17-year-old is in the car, we are complaining about other drivers. It is just what we do!
The other day I mentioned my blog! I also mentioned the writing I do for BizCatalyst 360 (Please check it out for wonderful content and connection!) and the articles I used to write for Women’s Voices Magazine. I even asked my kids if they had seen my recent article and post. What they said next might seem kind of shocking!
They all said, “You have a blog?”
This was followed by surprise on their part! Then, of course, they said they had no idea I wrote for any kind of publication or on any other format. I am sure you would not be surprised that they said they did not know I had my own website, YouTube channel, and more! I reminded them that I share these things on Facebook.
“We don’t follow you on Facebook!”
There you have it! I am so uncool that my nine kids have all stopped following me on Facebook. Okay, two of the youngest, don’t even have Facebook yet. I guess I bracing myself for the day! 7 out of 9 is not very good odds! It is not looking good for me with the younger 2!
I am thinking here that I am supposed to be upset about this! However, I wasn’t at all!
I mean, of course, I wish my kids read my posts, commented on them, and shared them with their friends! I wish they would think that I was the coolest dad in the world because I do have and do all these things! I guess that would be kind of cool! However, I see this as a victory of sorts! It is a win if my kids don’t want to follow me or see my articles or posts! You see, from my understanding, it is a parent’s job to be as uncool as possible to your teenage kids. If you are not cool, not funny, and not dressed right, then you are doing it right! So, when my 14-year-old uses my “dad shoes” as an example in a PowerPoint presentation she does on shoes for theater class, I am a roaring success! When my 17-year-old makes fun of my “dad bod,” I am eating right and living it up right!
When my 15-year-old daughter asks me to sit somewhere where she cannot see me when I come to her performances, that means I am doing something right. When her older sister wants me to shop whistling or shouting her name in a special cheer or they both want me to stop making “whooping” noises, I am a major good dad.
How is this all good?
While it may be true that they are not following me, they know one key truth:
I AM FOLLOWING THEM!
I heard the other day that someone told an associate of mine that I did not even want my kids! It hurt to hear this and I was appalled that anyone who knows me would say such a thing! It hurt inside! After careful reflection, I decided to ask my kids. So, at dinner that night, I said to them what I had overheard and then asked them if they had ever thought that I did not want them. Their answer was the best:
“Actually Daddy, we think you want us too much!”
This is the best thing ever to hear! They reminded me of the text messages, the instant messages, the e-mails (I call them Jacobs Letter!), and more. They mentioned the hugs, trips to the store, and more. I felt so happy inside! Because I love being a dad more than anything else in the world!
I am surely the most imperfect dad! I tell bad dad jokes, I wear out of date clothes, I am more round than I used to be, and I can be pretty silly at times. I have made mistakes. I have lectured too much and not always handled things perfectly. I have repeatedly told my kids that none of them came with a user manual or a downloadable PDF to tell me what to do with them–so they just have to take my best! I do apologize really well!
I love being a dad more than anything I have ever done! I love my children with all my heart and would do anything that was right and within my power to do for them. So, I am not upset at all about this! They might not be following me, but I will always be following them! And that makes me happiest of all!
So, let’s get back to complaining about other drivers!
