 When my daughter was two years old she ran away from home. It wasn’t exactly a pre-meditated fleeing. Truth is, someone (most likely me) left the back fence gate unlatched. So while my wife stepped inside to answer the phone, our little (evil) Yorkshire terrier made a break for it, taking our sweet little toddler as an accomplice on her cross-neighborhood joy-run.
Who knew a two year old with a saggy diaper could run so fast? In less than 60 seconds she was gone. Vanished. Completely out of sight.
A panicked call had me speeding home from the office while a band of concerned neighbors started the hunt. Thankfully, just as I was frantically screeching into our development, relief came. They’d found her (and unfortunately the dog, too) nearly three streets away and just a few yards short of a retention pond, completely oblivious to the chaos her devious curiosity had created.Here’s what I know…
I would have wrestled a bear to find my daughter that day (because, as you know, there is a burgeoning kodiak population here in suburban Indianapolis). Nothing else mattered. Meetings. Deadlines. Obligations. Life paused until she was back home safe where she belonged. We dropped everything to go and find her.
And that’s exactly the way God feels about you and me (but I fear we’re internally wired to think the opposite).
We see it from the very first chapters of the Bible:
“The woman stared at the fruit. It looked beautiful and tasty. She wanted the wisdom that it would give her, and she ate some of the fruit. Her husband was there with her, so she gave some to him, and he ate it too. At once they saw what they had done, and they realized they were naked. Then they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. Late in the afternoon, when the breeze began to blow, the man and woman heard the Lord God walking in the garden. So they hid behind some trees.
The Lord God called out to the man and asked, “Where are you?”
-Genesis 3:6-9
When Adam & Eve sinned, they were the ones that covered up. They were the ones that ran and hid. God came looking for them.
And He’s been pursuing us ever since.
You see, we instinctively think we have to clean things up. That we’re the ones who right the wrongs. That we’re the ones who must do the work to fill the gap between our sinful selves and a holy God. That we’re the ones who have to pay the price. That we’re the ones sentenced to go looking for a God who has hidden Himself from our ugly screw-ups.
But let me remind you, Holiness came looking for sinfulness. Jesus chased you all the way to a cross. Not to destroy you, but to redeem you. And then to empower you, transform you, and call you to something greater.
He’s looking for you. Right where you’re at. No matter where you’re at. It’s time to stop hiding and let yourself to be found.
This post was written by Erik Cooper. For the original post, go to: http://beyondtherisk.com/2013/04/10/i-would-wrestle-a-bear/BE HOLY.BE A MAN.
 It is strangely ironic that the freedoms and affluence we enjoy in our society are the very things that stand to ruin our children if not addressed early and effectively.
The consumer-credit industry is doing all it can to get your kids to fall for the buy-now, pay-later lifestyle. If you do nothing to intervene, statistics indicate that your child is headed for a life that will be severely impacted not by credit—credit is not the problem here—but by the debt it can create.
When the following three characteristics occur at the same time in the heart and mind of a child, they create a kind of “perfect storm” that has all the likelihood of creating a disastrous situation:
- attitudes of entitlement
- financial ignorance
- glamour of easy spending
For our debt-proofing purposes, “entitlement” is that demanding attitude that says, “I deserve it now even if I haven’t earned it or cannot pay for it.” Some call it the gimmes, others the I-wants. No matter what you call it, this attitude is running rampant, and not only among kids. Entitlement affects kids and adults alike.
Entitlement is subtle. It creeps into our lives when we compare our lifestyles and possessions to those of the people we respect and want to be like. It shows up in new parents who throw all caution to the wind when it comes to nursery furnishings and “mandatory” equipment. It shows up in two-income families who, because they work so hard, feel they deserve to have nice things. It shows up in adults who feel compelled to conform to society’s relentless ratcheting up of standards.
Entitlement is the standard message of marketing and advertising. Look carefully at everything that shows up in your mailbox this week. The message to keep up is relentless. The push for conformity creates attitudes of dissatisfaction and entitlement.
At every turn it seems something or someone is fanning the flames of entitlement in our lives—and our children’s lives too.
Attitudes of entitlement, both yours and your children’s, are an enemy that, if not dealt with, will surely sabotage your efforts to develop financial confidence in your kids.
A frugal lifestyle, where you live below your means, is the best environment in which to raise kids. When children observe their parents consuming carefully, making wise spending decisions, choosing not to buy the biggest and the best, and not living on credit, they begin to assimilate those values.
By telling your children, “We don’t choose to spend our money on that,” you send a positive message that you have money but make intelligent choices about how to spend it.
Clearly, attitudes of entitlement are a serious problem. But they are not terminal. Diligent parents who are willing to be consistent examples and limit setters will find success in tearing down attitudes that have the potential to do great harm.
Excerpted from Raising Financially Confident Kids by Mary Hunt (Revell, 2012).
To go to this post on Mary Hunt's site, click here.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
 In testimony that shocked Florida legislators, a lobbyist for Planned Parenthood explained that “her organization believes the decision to kill an infant who survives a failed abortion should be left up to the woman seeking an abortion and her abortion doctor.” But what else should we expect from an organization that has made countless millions of dollars off the killing of unborn babies?
As reported March 29, 2012 by the Weekly Standard, these legislators were “considering a bill to require abortionists to provide medical care to an infant who survives an abortion,” similar to the Born Alive Protection Act that Barack Obama voted against four times before he was president.
Rep. Jim Boyd was so taken aback by the testimony of Alisa LaPolt Snow, the Planned Parenthood lobbyist, that he said to her, “So, um, it is just really hard for me to even ask you this question because I’m almost in disbelief. If a baby is born on a table as a result of a botched abortion, what would Planned Parenthood want to have happen to that child that is struggling for life?”
She replied, “We believe that any decision that’s made should be left up to the woman, her family, and the physician.”
What? The baby survives an abortion in a Planned Parenthood clinic and is fighting for its life, and Planned Parenthood isn’t willing to say, “Yes, we want to see the baby’s life saved”? Of course not. If it was up to the mother and doctor to terminate the baby’s life inside the womb, why not continue the barbaric act outside the womb?
Rep. Jose Oliva, also incredulous, asked Snow, “You stated that a baby born alive on a table as a result of a botched abortion that that decision should be left to the doctor and the family. Is that what you’re saying?”
Snow replied, “That decision should be between the patient and the health care provider,” to which Oliva rightly countered, “I think that at that point the patient would be the child struggling on the table, wouldn’t you agree?”
Snow was obviously caught off guard and could only reply, “That’s a very good question. I really don’t know how to answer that. I would be glad to have some more conversations with you about this.”
In other words, even I can’t pretend to defend my own ridiculous position here.This post was written by Michael Brown. For the original post, go to: http://townhall.com/columnists/michaelbrown/2013/04/01/planned-parenthood-confirms-its-babykiller-status-n1554041BE HOLY.BE A MAN.
 I was giving the little girls a bath and wanted to capture an incredibly sweet moment that included two soapy, naked posteriors, but I hesitated. My smartphone was sitting next to me but I was reluctant to take the picture. Even though I knew it would put a smile on my mom’s face I struggled with the thought of texting it. During those few seconds of internal dialogue the moment passed, the girls resumed splashing about, and I felt tremendously cheated.
Why had I hesitated? Because I don’t want CPS banging on my door accusing me of taking pornographic pictures of my children. Because the world, hyper-sexualed and without boundaries, now judges the motivations of parents who take innocent photos of their own children.
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. What we have allowed in the name of freedom has now become our unraveling. As a society we have compromised our principles for social acceptance and political correctness and I fear we have lost the spirit of liberty which prompted us to freedom so many years ago. We are steeped in a quagmire, shackled and enslaved to an ideology that freedom includes anything that is morally corrupt-even if it means we become morally bankrupt.
At some point we, as a society, decided that pornography was acceptable and went so far as to label it part of the feminist movement. Women made the choice to take their clothes off for magazines under the guise of empowerment. The game became redefining pornography to promote sexuality, power and control in an effort to demonstrate that women were on equal footing with men. Instead of balking at the blatant objectification of young girls and women, a generation brazenly celebrated by mass producing pornographic material resulting in an unstoppable billion dollar industry. And eventually, like sin does, it permeates and creeps into the culture. It spreads like cancer, quietly at first until one day you open a magazine to find perfume advertised by a barely clothed, underaged model and provocative, sexually explicit commercials on the television. Pornographic images have been so quickly ingrained in the fabric of our society that we only flinch when it is egregious or an insult to our normally tolerant sensibilities. The line has been crossed so frequently that what was once immodest is now mainstream-all in the name of progress. And the ugliest side of porn, besides the world wide degradation of women, is the rampant, surging subculture of child pornography. While not new, child pornography, with the help of technology, flourished right alongside Hustler, Penthouse and Playboy.
I believe we are so desensitized to our overtly sexual world that we have forgotten why there were social boundaries in the first place. For the life of me I can’t understand how a woman ever came to believe that becoming the object of a man’s lustful and fleshly desires somehow made her life more equal or fair. That an entire generation decided that taking on the supposed promiscuous behavior of the opposite sex thinking it would create an environment of liberation is lunacy.
Pornography is steeped in sin. It is ugly, it is degrading and it destroys families. It doesn’t just affect the reader, watcher or partaker. It perpetuates an emotional disconnect. It feeds escapism and burdens the soul with reckless addiction. Pornography, whether splashed on a billboard advertisement or on the movie screen, has helped drown our nation in darkness.
So what have we done about it-this plague infecting our children, marriages and our families? We’ve turned around and pointed the finger at innocence. We demonize and scream in disgust at breastfeeding in public and naked pictures of babies because everything has become tarnished by sex. Instead of denouncing pornography we hold everything to it’s standard. We have actually begun using pornography as a litmus test for what is truly innocent or pure. You take a picture of your one year old in her birthday suit and a conclusion can be drawn that the picture is too sexual in nature. Why? Because we’ve lost our perspective on the beautiful creation of the human body and it’s function. We can not see past our sexualized filter even though families have been needlessly ripped apart for such things.
So, yeah. Pornography pisses me off. It’s warped our perspective and it stopped me from capturing a moment that was sweet and meant to be cherished. We may have freedom of speech in this country but we also have the freedom to refuse to patronize any industry, product or organization that promotes, sells or distributes porn. We have a responsibility to our children to unequivocally reject pornography.
Decency needs to be taught, it needs to be valued and it needs to trump perversion. The next generation depends on it…This post is written by April Cao. You can find this post on her blog here: http://theconservativeparent.com/why-pornography-pisses-me-off/
 Just like children, teenagers have motivations. Research indicates that there are essentially 11 goals of teenagers. To understand these goals makes you a proactive parent. If you figure out a teen's goal you will know how to handle it:
1. Superiority - these teens must be the best at everything
2. Conformity - Living up completely to the standards of established society
3. Popularity - these teens accumulate as many friends and social contacts as possible.
4. Defiance - these teens want to be in control or at least not controlled by adults
5. Sexual promiscuity - these teens are highly active and defiant about their sexual behavior
6. Inadequacy - these teens enjoy the victim role and seek consolation for their shortcomings
7. Charm - these teens use smooth talk and pleasing manners
8. Physical beauty or strength - these teenagers rely completely on their good looks, physical strength or abilities
9. Sexism - these teens become overly stereotypical masculine or feminine
10. Intellectuality - these teens value intelligence and study, read or discuss ideas most of the time
11. Hyperreligiosity - these teens immerse themselves in religious ideas and activities. All they talk about are religious ideas.
The overarching goal for teenagers is to make the adult in charge look stupid. Therefore, it is important to not be sucked into this game. Power struggles rarely work in interactions with teenagers. Teenagers will challenge and if you respond in an authoritarian manner, it won't work.
A key sentence to remember in dealing with teenagers is this:
RULES WITHOUT RELATIONSHIP LEADS TO REBELLION
What teenagers need more than anything from their parents is an honest, loving relationship. To just mete out punishment for infractions won't go far in building a relationship with them.
Let me ask you a few questions:1. Do you spend time alone with your teenager doing something that s/he wants to do?
2. Do you show an interest in things that interest him/her?
3. Are the consequences of behavior logical? For example, when caught speeding, does s/he lose car privileges or do you ban him/her from the computer? The consequences of behavior need to be logical. In other words, the consequences need to relate to the infraction.
4. Most importantly, are you a consistent Christian? Teens can spot phoniness a mile away. If you say one thing and do another, they will be turned off. If you have "hidden" behaviors, they know it. If they don't know it and then find out later, your integrity is down the tubes.
5. Do you live a life of openness and humility? Do they see you apologize to people when you are clearly wrong?
6. Do they see you respect everyone no matter who they are?
7. Do they see you love their mother?
These are just some simple steps to get you on your right foot with your teenager. Think about these seven questions.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
 To properly parent, it is important to know what motivates children. If you can figure out a child's goal, then you can figure out how to best help them. If you can identify the goals of a child you can plan your corrective action much more intelligently
Research indicates that there are four basic goals for kids:
1. Attention - Children want attention be it negative or positive. Negative attention is better than no attention.
2. Power - Children can openly rebel or be quietly stubborn
3. Revenge - lying, stealing, or hurting others
4. Inadequacy - This passive child relays the message, "Don't expect anything from me because I don't have anything to give."
CORRECTIVE ACTION - Four steps can help you to be proactive in your parenting. These four steps can be remembered easily with the acronym CARE.
C - Catch yourself - don't yell, talk too much or preach. Make action, not
words, the principal means of conveying intentions.
A - Assess the child's goals - What goals are being served by the behavior?
R - Respond with consequences and encouragement - Consequences
need to be logical and natural.
E - Execute with consistency, friendliness, and respect - Remember
that rules without relationship leads to rebellion.
As Christian fathers, we are to discipline and instruct our children in a godly manner, to not exasperate them or provoke them to anger.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
 The number one thing that kids say that they don't like about their parents?
WHEN PARENTS YELL
One time, when my son was young, he came into the house and I stopped him on the front porch. I don't remember what he did but I was madder than a hornet. I was yelling at him and I heard my voice go across the street, hit the neighbor's house and come back and hit me in the face. I sounded so stupid. I was embarrassed. I stopped yelling and told him that we would talk later when I was calmer.
There is a simple principle that research has shown that reduces fights between parents and their kids. This principle, is called the three T's. If you follow these three T's, research indicates that you will reduce fighting with your kids by 85%
T - Topic - When you have a disagreement with your child, concentrate on one topic. Don't stray into other topics. Stay on topic. Tackle one thing at a time.
T - Timing - When you have a disagreement with your child, do it at a time when you can concentrate on the topic. Do it at a time when you are not distracted by the phone, tv, etc.
T - Temper - If you can control your anger, the disagreement will be greatly lessened.
In fact, research shows that the third T, temper, is the most important of the three. God confirms this as well, "A man who controls his temper is better than a warrior who conquers a city."
Interestingly, a few years later, my son was watching a performance where I yelled in anger at another person on stage. He turned to my wife (his mother) after I yelled and said, "I don't ever remember Dad yelling before." When my wife told me that later, I was ecstatic. He didn't remember my temper. He recalled me as an even-tempered man.
So, I challenge you. Control yourself and reduce fighting with your kids.
Follow the Three T's. You'll be glad you did and so will your children.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
 I’m a dad of two little girls and one little boy.
And when my little girls play with dolls, I play too.
Does that make me less of a man? Does that make me effeminate? Does that make me a bad example for my son?
No. Because I think the best question hasn’t been asked yet.
The better question is, “Does that make me my daughter’s hero?”
Yes— and that’s all that matters.
Now, when I’m playing dolls with my daughters and when my son comes in the room, should I let him play? That seems to be a sticky question in today’s evangelical world.
The answer of a certain segment of the Christian population is, “No.” They fear men in America are becoming less masculine. They fear men are becoming increasingly effeminate. And while I’ve never read them make such a statement, my guess is that my playing with dolls is a bad example for my son, according to them, after all, I’m the primary model of masculinity in his life.
But I couldn’t see things more different than this group of Christians. Not only do I say, “Yes” to the question of whether can my son play dolls with my daughters and me, but I invite and encourage him to do so, whether I’m present or not.
The roles a child embodies at play reveal and create the roles they come to value as an adult. Play helps them accept themselves and others as God created us, and therefore is essential to a child’s social and psychological development. For that reason, I intentionally participate in my children’s play, and I invite them to play in a way that fosters the kind of adulthood I want to see grow in them.
I invite my son to play with dolls because I want him to learn from an early age that holding babies is not just for women, that it’s okay for a man to be tender, that “women’s work” isn’t beneath him, changing diapers is part and parcel of masculinity, and that being a great dad means getting on the floor and playing dolls with your kids.
I want my son to see that true masculinity is not defined by the machismo, culturally conditioned views of certain Christians, but is defined in the incarnation of Jesus, who humbled Himself, took on the role of a servant, and disregarded certain strict social boundaries in order to proclaim a God who, like a tender mother hen, desires to gather His children into His presence and love on them.
At some point, the evangelical world needs to see that, if our fears of our sons becoming less manly, or more effeminate stop us from playing dolls on the ground with our children, then our actions are less motivated by the gospel and more motivated by fear generated in our polemical culture.
And that’s a shame because the only ones who will pay the price for it are our kids—both our sons and our daughters.
I’m a dad. And I play with dolls. And that’s why my kids believe I’m a hero. And that’s why my son’s kids will see that he’s a hero, too.This post was written by Seedbed author, Thomas Fuerst. For the original post, go to: http://seedbed.com/feed/why-i-play-with-dolls-a-dads-take/BE HOLY.BE A MAN.
 Tom Brown’s School Days (free on kindle) was a popular nineteenth-century novel that followed eleven-year-old Tom Brown, as he adjusted to life at a public boarding school for boys and learned how to become a young gentleman. The following excerpt introduces an account of Tom’s only big fight at the school. The headmaster had given him a student to look after, and when a large bully attacked the frail and sensitive boy, Tom stepped in to stop the beating and fight the bully himself.
Fighting
From Tom Brown’s School Days, 1857
By Thomas Hughes
Let those young persons whose stomachs are not strong, or who think a good set-to with the weapons which God has given to us all an uncivilized, unchristian, or ungentlemanly affair, just skip this chapter at once, for it won’t be to their taste.
It was not at all usual in those days for two schoolhouse boys to have a fight. Of course, there were exceptions, when some cross-grained, hard-headed fellow came up who would never be happy unless he was quarreling with his nearest neighbors, or when there was some class dispute between the fifth form and the fags, for instance, which required bloodletting; and a champion was picked out on each side tacitly, who settled the matter by a good, hearty mill. But for the most part the constant use of those surest keepers of the peace, the boxing-gloves, kept the schoolhouse boys from fighting one another. Two or three nights in every week the gloves were brought out, either in the hall or fifth-form room; and every boy who was ever likely to fight at all knew all his neighbors’ prowess perfectly well, and could tell to a nicety what chance he would have in a stand-up fight with any other boy in the house. But of course no such experience could be gotten as regarded boys in other houses; and as most of the other houses were more or less jealous of the schoolhouse, collisions were frequent.
After all, what would life be without fighting, I should like to know? From the cradle to the grave, fighting, rightly understood, is the business, the real, highest, honestest business of every son of man. Every one who is worth his salt has his enemies, who must be beaten, be they evil thoughts and habits in himself or spiritual wickedness in high places, or Russians, or Border-ruffians, or Bill, Tom, or Harry, who will not let him live his life in quiet till he has thrashed them.
It is no good for Quakers, or any other body of men, to uplift their voices against fighting. Human nature is too strong for them, and they don’t follow their own precepts. Every soul of them is doing his own piece of fighting, somehow and somewhere. The world might be a better world without fighting, for anything I know, but it wouldn’t be our world; and therefore I am dead against crying peace when there is no peace, and isn’t meant to be. I’m as sorry as any man to see folk fighting the wrong people and the wrong things, but I’d a deal sooner see them doing that, than that they should have no fight in them.For the original post, go to: http://artofmanliness.com/2013/03/16/manvotional-fighting/
BE HOLY.BE A MAN.
 Dads. You may not have noticed but your daughter just left the house wearing tight, stretchy pants with the word “Juicy” emblazoned across her backside. And yes. She bought them with the money you gave her for school lunches, allowance or back to school clothes. Congratulations. You are now the official sponsor of your teenage daughter’s butt.
So what are your options? You can either:
A) ask her to change and be ready to stand your ground or
B) ignore and hope that every red blooded male she walks in front of doesn’t try to read her nether region.
If you decide to give this one a pass, because the word itself seems benign or not sexual in nature, think about the lesson you are teaching your little girl. She is wearing a piece of clothing that attracts attention to a part of the body that is highly sexualized. Beyonce and J Lo gave the butt it’s come-back and your daughter is now a part of the home-town tour. How does it feel to know that men are staring at your thirteen year old’s rear end? If you don’t have a natural inclination to grab a shotgun right now your denial is worse than I thought. And what about the pedophile lurking at the mall. Your angel, the one you promised to protect the minute she drew breath, has now captured the unwanted attention of your local pervert. If you don’t think your community has them, please don’t hesitate to consult any number of online sites in which you can have instant access to sex offenders in your area. I would start here and here. They are everywhere and now have a front row seat to your daughter’s main attraction.
It’s not just the pants. It’s the shirts that have a shoulder exposed and the skirt that looks like a napkin. It’s the teeny bikini and short shorts that all scream LOOK AT ME! I’M SEXY AND I KNOW IT! It is a silent invitation to make your daughter boy-bate yet you quietly acquiesce. You can’t make her change, right? All of her friends wear glittery half shirts that say I’M HOT so if everyone else is doing it….It’s just how kids are these days. What’s a dad to do? The truth is you stopped being the boss of her a long time ago and now just hope she doesn’t fight curfew and really doesn’t wear makeup at school. And maybe deep down, not knowing what’s going on with her is a little bit easier when your head hits the pillow at night.
Wake up, dad.
Our daughters need to understand that they are valued because of what they hold in their hearts. They must be encouraged to dress in a way that keeps attention on their beautiful faces so that their audience can focus on their words. And I bet you think she’s got some pretty important things to say; things that make you proud that she’s your girl. Teach her that her opinions matter. That she is more than what she wears and certainly she means more to you than what her peers think. Tell her that you love her enough to ask her to be different. When all of her friends wonder why she’s the only one wearing a one piece bathing suit at the pool, she can be confident that you have her best interest at heart. It may not be easy but does it matter if it’s right? She may struggle when she doesn’t get the same attention from the boys but you’ll teach her that that kind of attention isn’t about liking her for who she is. It’s about objectifying her outside without consideration for her inside. You’ll remind her that she is to be respected, that her body is a gift and should be treated as such. It will be important to remind her that she is loved.
She needs to know that she is loved by you.
When was the last time you hugged your baby girl? I mean really, truly held her so that she felt your heart beat. I know. She wears a bra now and rolls her eyes when you make a joke. She’s way cooler than you are and none of her friend’s dads bother them with hugs and kisses. They leave them alone to text and IM and don’t try to disengage the cell phone that has suddenly become an additional limb. Your daughter still needs to be held. She may be screaming for independence but she is still a child and needs to be protected and held within arms length. Giving her space and giving her free reign are two different things.
Have you grabbed her for a quick trip to the store or brought her flowers just because? Did you make a date to take her to a movie. When was the last time you left a note on her bathroom mirror reminding her that she was the best thing you’ve ever done. Ever. When she disappointed you did you in turn tell her that you know she’ll make the right choice next time. Did you cancel that conference to make sure you made her soccer tryouts. She learned to kick a ball because of you and wants you to think she’s as good as you are.
Talk to her. Don’t worry about being her friend. Just be. Let her know that you are available and a good listener. Ask her questions that have more to do with how her day was. Be prepared to engage even when the days seem to run together and time is short. Know her friends, her interests and her aspirations. Don’t rely on your wife to be the only one emotionally connected to your children-especially your daughters-and don’t leave it to her friends and classmates to be the singular voice of reason about all things life related.
You are the first man she will love. You hold the key to her heart long before she marries and has her own children. She will make choices because of the father you have decided to be. Your little girl needs your love, compassion and affection and if you do not give it to her, if you withhold it from her because she seems to no longer need you, she will seek that closeness from someone else. Someone who may not value her. Who may not care about the goodness in her and exploit her need to be held, to be cared for, to feel wanted.
You may not have until tomorrow to become the father she deserves. A sweet talking, smooth walking, four-years-her-senior-and-brags-about-his-conquests kinda boy may already be charming his way into her heart. And once he’s in, that means you’re out. It could be a group of friends that skip school because togetherness feels good. And so does smoking a joint and blowing off final exams. All because they made her feel connected and welcome-a part of a chosen family that sticks together and looks out for one another. If you lose her it will be a fight to get her back. The pole is shiny. The pole is escape and acceptance rolled up in pretty lies.
I married a man like my father. My father told me I could be anything. He kissed the top of my head and hugged me even when I didn’t want him to. He showed up and cheered me on. He was fiercely protective and horribly intrusive when I needed my privacy. I could not get away with much and in the end, trying wasn’t worth the look of disappointment on his face, so I stayed out of trouble. So when it came time to fall in love and take a husband I chose what I knew. Someone who loved me to the end of the moon and back. Someone who was protective, caring and respectful. A man who would hug me even when I was not my best. I chose love because I had been loved in a way that gave me a sense of value and I hope you’ll do the same.
Because she’s worth it.
This post was written by April Cao. You can find the original post here: http://theconservativeparent.com/?p=171
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
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