…a time came when mankind aspired not to co-creation but to analysing God's creation… when human thought faltered, aspiring not to creation but to the accumulation of knowledge… " – Ringing of the Cedars, Book 4: Co-Creation, by Vladimire Megre.
Today, we honored Fatherhood, and the important relationship of a father in the creation of a family. I pointed out to the kids that they should look to their dad for his reflections on his own experience, but not for knowledge to substitute for their own reflections. This is what co-creation is, and it makes family life seem more like a creative endeavor than a patriarchal system of governance. 🙂
"Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret."
Joe also chose a silly poem by Shel Silverstein about a dad who game his son dollar.
Smart
And I swapped it for two shiny quarters
My dad gave me one dollar bill
‘Cause I’m his smartest son,
‘Cause two is more than one!And then I took the quarters
And traded them to Lou
For three dimes—I guess he don’t know
That three is more than two!Just then, along came old blind Bates
He gave me four nickels for my three dimes,
And just ‘cause he can’t see
And four is more than three!And I took the nickels to Hiram Coombs
Down at the seed-feed store,
And the fool gave me five pennies for them,
And five is more than four!And then I went and showed my dad,
And closed his eyes and shook his head—
And he got red in the cheeks
Too proud of me to speak!
Lastly, we wrote in our family journal some of the words that come to mind when we think about fathers. Love, teacher, experience… Zofia wanted to write something, too; she wrote "CAT"… And, I see Flo snuck the world "wood chuck" on the bottom by a little picture of a tree… Silly girl. When I think of my father, now well into my own parenting journey, I see someone who loved me, guided me, tried not to judge me too harshly, but occasionally looked upon me with the same critical eye he sometimes directed at himself. I see value, experience, wisdom, and the unfolding of a unique creative journey, meshed on this physical plane with mine for a short time, but entangled in the web of existence forever.
Fathers bring an element of balance to a family, or a child's relationship with the world. Fatherhood is a lofty endeavor, often thrust upon those unprepared souls most seeking balance themselves. So, though it may not be a perfectly scripted role, it offers plenty of creative licence!