Fatherhood

Fatherhood

Fatherhood has etched a deeper love in my heart but not just for my kids. It’s kind of like the day after a huge deluge when they rain makes new paths through the Earth.

I began my first real job almost 9 years ago. I had been working in my profession for over a decade, at the time, but this was my first REAL job - fatherhood. That experience started with me being 300 miles away from my in-labor wife (spoiler alert - I made it in time to meet my beautiful daughter, Selah, thanks to great friends and fortune). But this isn’t about that moment or story but about the men that prepared me for this Blessing and journey.

I grew up across the street from my paternal grandparents and had the fortune of being raised by two sets of parents and two fathers - William Hill, Sr and William Douglas Hill. My memories of Summer mornings include early coffees at the table with these two - coffee and light cream or milk in their cups, milk with a drop of coffee in mine. With nothing really to add to the conversation, I listened to them discuss the world, our families, and everything in between. Every now and then I’d be included in the conversation but for the most part, I just listened and enjoyed my time in their presence.

Today, I sit with my son and do the same...but I tell him that his grandfather and great grandfather are still here having coffee with us. I explain that as they loaned their names to me, I’ve loaned mine to him. There’s no pressure on him or his sisters to be anything other than whom God intended for them to be. I hope this leads them wherever happiness intersects with responsibility to family but if their destination is different or unique to their interests, then I just pray that it is fulfilling to their Souls.