The Masculine Mystique

     Re-reading my last post, I now realize that I can no longer blog and drink wine at the same time.  I think I might have gone off the sappy end there.  Any female readers, I'm sure will disagree, but if there are any guys perusing this, I think they will concur.
     Us guys are taught from little on to not show weakness.  Why is that?  Some would say it's because that's the way we were raised.  Others would say it's because we are hardwired that way.  Still others believe that its in the hormones.  Here is what I think.  I think it's all of the above.  And here is something else I think; It is a good thing.
     Okay, it is probably not a good thing to bottle up feelings and let them pile up inside for a future explosion, but that is not what I am advocating.  I'm saying that a good deal of life is a battle field.  In battle, to show weakness is to court defeat.  Did I show weakness in my last post?  Is the blogosphere a battlefield?  Yes and yes!  I'm a man dammit!  I am competing with millions of other blogs for readership!  I'm not going to tap into the thirty-five or so males that read blogs by showing weakness!
    I feel better now.  Thank you.  Time to get to a letter from one of my readers  -  me.

Dear Dad Dude;
My 5 yr old son seems to cry at the drop of a hat.  All it takes is a skinned knee or a bump on the noggin and the tears flow like a river.  I'm constantly telling him to man up, but that seems to make him cry all the more.  Any suggestions on how to handle this?
No Wuss in Wichita

Dear Wuss;
Okay, despite all the macho stuff I wrote above, you sir - are a jerk.  If you should keep this behavior up, you will turn your son into a jerk as well.  I'm just guessing here, but I am fairly sure that your old man was also jerk, wasn't he?  Break the cycle of jerkdom going on in your lineage!  You can comfort your son without coddling him!  If he skins his knee, praise him for trying hard at whatever he was doing.  Then stick a bandage on it and let the kid cry it out!  He's only 5 for goodness sake!  5 year-olds cry!  If he was 15 I'd say you might have a case, but he is 5!

That's it!  Another installment in the can. If you read it and even kind of liked it, send a link to everyone you ever heard of!   Also, please know that I am in no way trained in family counseling or am I a doctor or any kind of relationship professional.  Agree or not - the choice is 100% yours!
 
     Thanks for reading!
PS.  I am in the Big Apple this weekend... so NO BLOG FOR YOU!  See you next Wednesday!

Write your questions to; daddude@wi.rr.com