For me it serves as a reminder to my responsibility as a father. The moment that child shows up to the party, your whole purpose shifts.

So to all the awesome poppas out there, thank you so much. 

To the rest of you, the future is in your hands. Your kids will ultimately become what you do or do not teach them.  

Its a hardline to walk though. How strict do I have to be? How often do I let things slide? What is the line between friend and father.

I do not know.

So the whole 2 years of experience I have on the job I have gathered this:

It all comes down to time.  That is what is going to matter the most.  You can not get it back. My son just turned two years old yesterday. Only two  i know, but I feel like he was just born. I remember his birthday last year where he could barely walk without stumbling and now he pulls of acrobatic feats of amazement daily.

So we as dads need to invest. Personal time is good. Time with your wife is good. But it is so important to give your kids that time. I hate when I get home really late and my time is limited with Asher.  We used to be pretty strict with that timeline thing. In bed by 8.30pm! But if it is a day where I get home at 7.45...you know what? Forget it. I would rather stay up later playing with my son so he can experience his dad loving on him. He takes naps. He can catch up on sleep, but he can not catch up on the time we won't have if I check out when I get home. The flip side is coming home earlier. I try and I am working on it. I am by no means the perfect father, husband or man. I fail all the time, but I am trying. I need to try harder everyday because Asher is going to see how his dad behaves and acts and will mimic that all his life. 

The biggest problem with society right now is the lack of responsibility.  Fun is great. Have fun. But have fun needs to be redirected as a dad. 4 hours of HALO on XBOX 360 can not happen anymore. You need to play Lego Batman now. With your son. After homework. 

Adapt.

Another thing...

Men! If you do not have kids of your own, but are clearly someone with common sense and wisdom please mentor some kids. Get involved in youth or children's ministry. A community program. Something! There are so many kids who desire to have some kind of role model. If not they are going to learn from somebody else who is willing to invest in them. And they are going to poison them.  

So you may be asking how do I get some help? 

Dude!