The other day one of my students told me it was his birthday. I high-fived him and congratulated him. A shy smile slowly crept across his face as one would expect for a teenage boy who is still trying to be macho. It was a joyous celebratory occasion and I was happy for him. He seemed to be happy too until I asked him what kind of birthday cake he was going to have.
He told me that he was not having any cake. I asked why, and with his smile long gone, he told me his mother was going out with her boyfriend instead. I felt so sad and so helpless because there was nothing that I could do to fix this. All I could do was give the kid a hug, tell him that I was sorry and then try to be the best teacher that that kid has ever had!
Parents, I do know that we all deserve to have some time in our lives without all the parenting responsibilities tugging at our sleeves. But, I also fully believe that regardless of whatever else may be going on in our lives, it is still a better decision to pick our children over everything else trying to push its way on to our plates on the same night as our children's birthdays.
Let's make some room on our plates for that delicious birthday cake and that fabulous celebration with our little men, our sons. Let's get the best-tasting cake we can find and create some delicious memories with our own sons. I am more than willing and more than happy to have some yummy cake with my son, and I bet you are too, right? So, let's not let dating get in the way, okay?
Now as my Granddaddy always said, "Go learn, lead, and lay the way to a better world for all of us. Remember, don't let life get in the way of picking your son on his birthday. And once again parents, thanks in advance for all that you do, and all that you will do …
