I’m Somewhere Where I Don’t Know Where I Am
Despite what librarians would have us believe, Wikipedia is a wonderful thing. It’s a font of superficial knowledge, perfect for sounding intelligent or finally winning the History category in Trivial Pursuit. Or finding the categories of Trivial Pursuit, for that matter.
Today, on a whim, I searched for ‘fatherhood‘. I was curious to know how the online community came to a consensus on what it means to be a father. I now understand why this ain’t the only fatherhood blog in town.
Fathers biological, social, legal, absent, stay-at-home, weekend…even ‘legally fatherless children’. What’s a dad to think? By comparison, ‘mother‘ has a fairly simple entry. Conception, gestation, ‘raising children’, Mother’s Day. There’s even a picture of a duck with her ducklings. Aww.
It’s fairly clear that being a father isn’t what we once thought it was, and we’re looking for answers. How did we so complicate something as simple as a father and his child?
October 23rd, 2006 at 8:58 am
You’re right, Jared. It’s really a shame that we have so complicated something which is, and should be, so simple. As a social worker, I dealt with a lot of these various labels for fathers. I really made me sad that, for so many kids, there had to be a lot of detailed explanations as to what their father’s role in their life was about.
Unfortunately, I also had to deal with that in my personal life, when my daughter’s father disappeared after out divorce and elected not to be part of her life. She has a great stepfather, and everything’s worked out wonderfully for us, but many people aren’t that lucky.
I also feel it’s a little unfair that women have not been as labeled as men have in this manner. I also dealt with any number of women who did not fit the traditional role of “mother” in one way or another.
I really liked this post!
October 25th, 2006 at 3:34 pm
Hi Jared,
I represent the millions of fathers who’ve been limited or completely cut off from their children, against their will, with no wrongdoing on their part. We’re attempting to pass laws across the nation, and around the world guaranteeing equality for both genders in family court.
Our job would be done if it wasn’t for the domestic violence and feminist organizations lying to the media, the public and legislators. I saw it for myself in Sacramento when I testified for AB1307, the shared parenting bill. The organization MediaRADAR is exposing their lies for all to see.
Dads, unmarried and divorced, just want to be DADS.
December 20th, 2007 at 4:32 am
I would like to see a continuation of the topic