Throwback Thursday, a post from Fall, 2012...
I am mighty proud to have my Pardy Man guest blog this week! Josh Pardy is more than just a handsome hubby and devoted daddy...he's also a pretty kick-butt writer. Check out his last guest-blog here, and enjoy this week's latest lesson in his life...
I am mighty proud to have my Pardy Man guest blog this week! Josh Pardy is more than just a handsome hubby and devoted daddy...he's also a pretty kick-butt writer. Check out his last guest-blog here, and enjoy this week's latest lesson in his life...
Sometimes a guy just needs a reminder. And though it may
sound and look trite, I can’t tell you how many times that simple alert has
saved me…and more importantly, my wife and kids. Owning a GPS-ed, WiFi-ed, podcasting, text-receiving smart
phone is just the best thing ever. Sure I had to learn to limit myself when I discovered the
likes of Angry Birds and Grantland, but the technology that is forevermore in
my pocket functions as not just a great time-waster (though it certainly is
that), but a powerful tool to help remind me of what’s truly important.
It all started
when I upgraded my phone and discovered a little thing called “proximity
reminders”. It’s actually pretty
simple, you add a reminder to your phone, and rather than have it alert you at
a certain time, you set the alert for when you get close to a pre-determined
place. As long as you don’t ever
check the box next to the reminder, it will alert you (ad infinitum) as you
approach your destination, day in, day out. Ok, so maybe not so simple.
In my case, I have the reminder “Be A Good Dad/Husband” set
to alert me when I arrive at destination: Home. Unless my phone is dead, it literally never fails. As I come driving up to our apartment,
the GPS senses that I am close to “Home,” and sends me a quick little ping: “Be
A Good Dad/Husband.”
“Be A Good Dad/Husband.” Gee, certainly easier iReminded than done. As a man, I take the responsibility of
providing for my family very seriously.
I work hard, I get exhausted and elated, I can feel frustrated and
sometimes just straight down-in-the-dumps. And though I would love to say that simply seeing my girls
causes all of that tension to just melt away, the fact of the matter is, it
doesn’t.
waiting for daddy |
This Dad/Husband needs
himself a reminder because he can carry around all of those raw emotions and
totally miss the sweet simple joy that seeing his family can bring him after a
long day at the office.
And let me tell you, if I am willing to pay attention to it,
this little reminder works! Even
after my most intense or draining days, somehow (God’s grace, most likely)
seeing that little ping helps me reframe my mind, marshals energy from an
unknown source, and readies me for whatever I may find when I open that door to
the house.
Probably the best part
about it is, I set the reminder because I know it’s important. Therefore, I am communicating my own desires to my own self
in a way that won’t drive myself totally crazy. I have only myself and my silly iPhone 4 to blame if I begin
to feel nagged.
In the beginning, it was actually sort of embarrassing. What kind of freako needs a
proximity-based reminder to alert him of the fact that his kids need a hug, his
wife needs a kiss, and everyone will need a healthy amount of attention before
the night is over? Well, truly,
this freako needs it! So I would
make sure to dismiss the alert from my phones notification screen prior to
walking in the door. The alert
would serve its purpose, and I would walk in ready to be the best Dad/Husband
ever and no one would be the wiser to my little iParenting life-hack.
But, one day I forgot to clear the screen. I came in, threw my iPhone on the
coffee table, plopped down and began to hear about my girls’ respective days
when wouldn’t you know it, Emily went to hand me my phone and discovered the
secret of my success. “Be A Good Dad/Husband” right there on the screen. I mean really, how do you explain that?
“What’s this?” She asked. “Oh, uh. It’s
just, like… a little something that I do…” I stammered back. Then I copped to it and told the whole
story.
Thankfully Emily thought it was sweet and not at all
freakish. But, I won’t lie, it was
embarrassing! It was then that she affirmed to me that with or without the
alert, I was doing a great job as a Dad and Husband. We had a good laugh about it, but even still, most days I
still need that reminder.
Now I consider my proximity alert something of a merit badge
that I will forevermore be pursuing.
It pings, I unashamedly take in its simple, yet profound message, I walk
in the door and try to be a good a Dad/Husband. That is one reminder box that I have never checked, and
never will, because the work of a good Dad/Husband is never done.
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