The father-son relationship is an art of parenting that is sometimes misunderstood, or even sometimes misconceived by society. The absence of a father in a young boy's upbringing can cause many setbacks in his emotional well-being, which usually becomes prominent when they reach their late teen/early adult years. I can go on, and on about the absence of a father, but today, I am going to focus on the presence of a father, and how beneficial it is to a young boy.
I am going to start with a movie I saw, that changed my perspective on what I wanted the gender of my first child to be. I always wanted my first child to be a girl, until I saw After Earth (which is a movie that has a strong message that was overlooked by its viewers), starring Will Smith and his son, Jaden Smith. In this movie, the focus was primarily on the father-son relationship and its hardships. Will (the prime commander) has large shoes to fill, and Jaden (his son) trained very hard to be as great, or even better than his father. His father instilled greatness in his child through discipline beyond his son's understanding. Jaden trained better than his father did when his father was training, but he was told that he's not ready to be a ranger. Will decided to take Jaden on one of his journeys with him and his rangers as an act of bonding, but their voyage ship crashed in to an abandoned Earth, with them being the only two survivors. Will was then hurt, and unable to move. Will had to leave their fate in the hands of him guiding his son through life and death situations. One simple mistake could mean death for the both of them. Jaden learned that he needs his father, and he needs to trust his guidance and commands. Later, Will learned that he also needs to trust his sons ability to survive. When Jaden reached a point where his father thought he wouldn't be able survive, Will asked him to abort mission. Jaden, who was determined to prove to his father that he can complete the mission, went on against his father's command. Jaden was able to save his father and himself with a loss of communication using all of the skills and wisdom his father instilled in him. One thing his father instilled in him is that danger is real, but fear is a choice. He was able to use that wisdom and exert it in to bravery.
This movie has a great message, which is why I am going to give five reason why father-son relationships are important.
1: ROLE MODEL- Fathers, you will become your sons instant role model. Starting from the young infant-toddler years, your son will start to mimic everything you do; from the way you stand, walk, talk, gesture, react, and so on. You will become the first person your son looks up to.
2: DISCIPLINE- Discipline is the most important thing a son need in his life. This is where the father's role is critical. Fathers need to be there to teach their sons how to determine what's right and what's wrong. Once your child steps outside of their home, they will go on to live everything you taught them, or everything you did not teach them.
3: INTERACTION- The interaction between a father and a son is important. A son needs a father to get dirty with, to play sports with, to run around the house and make noise with, and so on. This type of bonding, in fact, helps with their temperament, and aggression towards others. A young boy needs to be active, and sometimes, only a father can provide this type of activity for their sons.
4: ATTACHMENT- The attachment that a son can have towards his father is amazing. The father, being someone that his son can closely relate to will create a bond that no one can touch. You will become so attached that you will see yourself in him. Your natural instincts to protect him, discipline him, let him handle thing on his own, etc will service itself because you will be so in sync with your sons abilities.
5: LEGACY- Every father wants to leave a legacy. You must instill wisdom in to your child that will carry on from their childhood, to their adolescent and adult years. You must trust your son as much as you want your son to trust you. That's why bonding, and building your attachment is very important because your wisdom will live on through your son's instincts, and conscious.