Making of a man. Dad’s job

I don’t know if ‘quality’ time between a father and the son is still the norm these days. Nevertheless, I strive to make time for my prized son, Kevin and me. Here is what happened to me when I got home from work recently:

‘Dad, our teasher wants us to learn a shong,’ says Kevin as he sprints towards me when I get home from work. Now Kevin is only three years and has just joined kindergarten.

‘Really?’ I ask, as Laura (my wife) gives me that ‘what-time-is-it?’ look. ‘Yesh daddy.’ ‘Uumh,’ I mutter before quickly adding, ‘Sorry honey, I am late again today.’ ‘Yeah yeah yeah… Now listen to Kevin. For him to be a man he has got to get it from a man,’ Laura says. ‘Dad, are you lishening to me?’ Kevin interrupts. ‘Oh yes sonny.’ ‘Yesh dad, she shays you are a good shinger.’‘Yes, I said so!’ Laura now shouts from the kitchen.

It has been a long day and the only thing that is threatening to come out of my mouth is a little snap so that my people can let me be for a while. However, I wonder how much that would fetch because I remember the last time I did that I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening making it up to Laura, telling her sweet-nothings and unbelievable promises.

So after a few minutes of letting sense prevail, I rest my case and say, ‘Kevin, come. I need to teach you a song.’ He crawls from a vintage position, where he was glued to the TV. I scoop Kevin into my arms and take him to his room.

We are lost in father and son time, chatting and singing (it has been well over an hour), when we are startled with, ‘Daddy, Kevin needs to wake up early to go to school tomorrow,’ from Laura.

‘Mum, daddy will take me to school tomorrow,’ Kevin says without looking at her, totally enjoying that monkey-dangly game with me. ‘Is that so?’ directing the question to me. ‘Yeah, yeah, why not,’ I say looking at Kevin. ‘Dad, do you want to show her what I taught you?’ Argh. For some crazy reason, I like to maintain a straight composure—even in front of my wife. However, for the sake of making the diverse man I want out of Kevin…
I reorganize my mindset and clear my throat to ready myself for the evening’s most sheepish endeavour.

As we clap and dance, the song goes:
‘He’s got the whole world, in his hands
He’sh got the ’ole wide world in hish handshs
He’s got the whole world in his hands,
He’sh got the ’ole world in hish handshs.’

Trust Kevin to sing that perfectly, and Laura leaves the room with an amused smirk.

END:BL30/22

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