I Am An Excellent Father — Family Story

I wake up before my family does and go downstairs to exercise. I brew coffee and drink it from my Star Wars mug. I greet my son and wife as they lumber downstairs, my son running into my arms. Our toddler knows the drill. I scoop him up, and together we pile into my 2000 Dodge Durango, the same car I have had since high school. Off we go to my parents’ house where our son will spend the day while we work.

I am an excellent father.

I get home and head up to the guest bedroom, which we have transformed into a homemade office during stay-at-home orders. I join meetings, answer e-mails, and do my typical everyday work.

I am an excellent father.

My breaks are filled with watching “House Hunters” and making a “Target run” almost every other day — there seems to be something we are always forgetting. I check our budget constantly to make sure we are on track financially. Later, I prep for dinner before rushing upstairs to finish the last of my work.

I am an excellent father.

After work, I finish up dinner as our son and my wife come rushing in from their afternoon run. Sweaty, she collapses to the floor, while our son toddles around, full of energy. I take breaks from cooking to roughhouse with him, sending him into a fit of giggles. We eat dinner and do…