Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Advice to young fathers, and a reminder to others

Gentlemen: My father in law, Oscar the Grouch, generally begins these sorts of lectures with, " Free advice is worth what you pay for it, so ... I think that..."

This is one of those lectures. I get off sharing this with you, because I'm older than you and care about your well being.

My friends, your wife, the mother of your children, wears many hats throughout her life. She wears them proudly, and with as little complaint as necessary. She's wife, lover, daughter, sister, mother, friend... besides what her chosen career may require.

The gods willing, you two will live to have 80 years of wedded bliss. However long you have, if you remember this one thing, know this in your heart to be true, your life will be happy. Ignore this at your peril.

Of all the hats your wife will ever wear, truly, deeply, to the bottom of her soul, the only one that really matters to her is MOTHER.

No matter how old you are, no matter how long you're married, you will never rank higher in her love than 1 place below the number of children she has. Competing for better is predestined to failure.

To know this, and accept this, is to be a happy husband.

Toad

4 comments:

ADG said...

Toad...to know said wisdom is also the key to being a good co-parent. For all of the differences that LFG's mom and I had-parenting LFG remains something that we agree on 99% of the time and I defer to her good mothering judgement 95% of the time. LFG is blessed to have a great mom.

Mrs. Blandings said...

The exceptions are few. We can't help it - it is in the hard drive.

~Tessa~Scoffs said...

Mr. Toad of Toad Hall, I respectfully disagree. My husband comes first. I chose him and he chose me. I waited nine years to marry him and we have been married for (almost) 13 years. Not a day goes by that I don't absolutely revel in our love for each other.
Please don't get me wrong, I love My Three Sons. My heart aches with love for them; my whole life revolves around their well-being. I find joy in their successes, I feel pain in their sorrow. They mean the absolute world to me but my husband is my universe.

Toad said...

Your husband is a very fortunate man.