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How To Be A Man, Dad & Husband In A World Gone Mad




I fell in love with this video the first time I saw it while watching it with my colleagues at work. It literary spoke to my soul. At the time, I thought of it as a great piece of brand storytelling. I even referenced it in an industry blog post. But there was something that haunted me about the video and it wasn't the state of modified foods. It was the scarecrow himself and his smoldering dissatisfaction with everything going on around him. Things that most folks were giving no thought to, tossing off the continual perversion of their lives (or in this case, the food they were eating) as normal.

And so it goes with me, your friendly neighborhood Dad-Man, who's consistently been at this blogging game since 2008. I often find myself heartbroken by this world where we currently live. I tire daily of the gong that social media has become for hatred. I tire of the ongoing battle of the sexes in the supposed game of love because at it's core there is mostly lust being inaccurately referenced as love. Divorce is now commonplace and a topic of conversation for those who should just be focused on playing and drawing. I tire of hearing news of the economy of our own making, lest we forgot how credit was flowing like rivers of gold in the nineties. The party was destined to end at some point, folks. Our public education system is broken, our teachers our underpaid and our kids are losing. We live in a society that glorifies the self and only comes together, if at all, in the midst of catastrophe. But does it have to go that far, each and every time in order for us, humans, to realize that we are inextricably connected. There is no coincidence to being connected via six degrees of separation and at times, only two thanks to social media.

I Am The Scarecrow, So To Speak

But what can be done other than to bemoan the obvious? Last week while I was walking my dog I realized something that's been obvious for a long time --- I'm that character in the Chipotle video above. The only difference being I didn't decide to make a difference by opening up my own makeshift burrito stand filled with fresh ingredients. Instead, I began blogging about my life, about my struggles with marriage, about my joys of fatherhood, about my challenges of manhood. Everything that should've chased me off the cliff has instead strengthened my resolve to be the best man that I can be for my family and this world. And if, by reading me, I've rubbed off on you just a little bit, then I've done my job. But now is the time to extend this and make it truly count. I'm the guy who uses love as a weapon, rather than weapons, no matter who laughs at me nor how many times they do. I could go on, but I don't have to. The 1,000+ posts on this blog speak to my commitment. But regardless of that large number I simply can't do this alone. And neither can the other bloggers who occupy the fatherhood/family space. We need you to carry our message into your hearts, your homes, your communities and across your networks. I need you to take up this charge with me. To give it legs. To make it worthwhile. To make a difference that's actually good for the sake of being good and not good in reaction to tragedy.

Introducing this blog's new tagline: How To Be A Man Dad & Husband In A World Gone Mad

How To Be A Man, Dad & Husband In A World Gone Mad: Take The Pledge

So now you know the new tagline. A tweak on the original that says so much more than before.

With this new tagline I'm reinvigorated and reenergized in my mission as a blogger. It is my passion, via my writing, to help dads, men, and even the mothers and wives in their lives to become agents of change for good. None of the fixing that you may require in your respective lives is up to anyone else. But by changing yourselves for the better, you do have the potential to change the lives of your families and ultimately the world. By myself I can do some good, but together we can get a whole lot done. Make a difference in your life and the lives of others. Pledge the following and please share as often as you can:

  1. To love your wife and family with all your heart, strength and available resources.
  2. To become financially healthy (not to be confused with wealthy - but in being healthy you will become healthy).
  3. To take personal ownership of your physical, emotional and spiritual health.
  4. To respect and honor the privilege of fatherhood.
  5. To model strength, compassion and love for your family and the world.
  6. To do good, not just to those who love you, but to all when it is in your power to do so.


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