Your Family Was Given A Gift

There have been incalculable losses over the last year. The death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic is staggering. The economic devastation is generational. And that is to say nothing of the missed graduations, the lost seasons of youth sports, the time away from the classroom. 

These losses are real. But we must not, as parents, be too quick to let the losses dominate our view of what has transpired. We should not give in to this narrative that our kids, our families, our lives have been “irreparably harmed.” Because inside of all this loss has also been a gift

Never before and never again will we likely get to spend this much time together, day in and day out. Eventually, more and more work will transition back to the office. Travel will become commonplace. We’ll be so busy that even the time we’ve spent Facetiming and Skyping with relatives we were separated from will seem like a distant luxury. 

This year we’ve gotten to spend together was a gift. It was months and months of garbage time—garbage time on the couch, in the yard, putting them down to bed, taking them for long drives just to break up the boredom. Even the cabin fever we occasionally felt—one day, we’ll miss that. We’ll look back on this unique period and think, “Remember when I didn’t miss bath time for a year?” “Remember when I watched them grow two inches in front of me?” “Remember when my teenaged daughter actually talked to me because she didn’t have anyone else to talk to?”

Yes, this pandemic has been tragic. But even in tragedy, there was beauty—because there was family. There was the present moment. You got to enjoy that. You got to breathe it in. 

And if you didn’t it? If, as you read this, it’s hitting you that you wasted it? Well, guess what?! It’s not too late. Seize today. Seize the gift.

P.S. This was originally sent on April 27, 2021. Sign up today for the Daily Dad’s email and get our popular 11 page eBook, “20 Things Great Dads Do Everyday.”

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