Category: parenting

Your guardian angel

Ian Hunter1 Comment

The world can be a scary place for a very young child

Learning by exploration requires a degree of confidence

Knowing that there is always somebody watching your back

Someone who will be there for you if you get into danger

She is your guardian angel 

Offering you unconditional love

Nurturing you with food and a safe space to play and rest

Teaching you the essential skills of living and loving

Comforting you in times of distress

Counseling you as you wrestle with emotional problems

Nursing you to good health in times of sickness

Being there for you always as you grow and develop

Guiding you through those difficult adolescent years

Helping change the world for the next generation

As you become an adult and leave the nest

Despite your growing independence and physical separation

You know she will always be available if you need her

She will help you raise your children

Stepping in when their own mother is overloaded or sick

Teaching you the skills of parenting that no book can provide

Setting a role model for family love

Sadly there will come a day when she will pass away

Leaving you with fond memories and infinite gratitude

You will grieve her loss but she will will continue to comfort you

For she lives on eternally in your heart 

Thank you Mother

Life smells so sweet (most of the time)

Ian HunterLeave a comment

The human body is amazing

It functions so well on air, food and water

Absorbing oxygen from breathed air

Converting food into fuel for muscles

Equipped with eyes as our window into the world

Legs are there to transport us fast or slow

Hand are dextrous to perform amazing tasks

Our brain is much more than a memory bank

It entertains us with thoughts and dreams

Almost all body functions are autonomous

Our hearts beat every second without commands

We breathe without knowing it

Our digestive systems work away 24/7

Not always quietly unfortunately

With careful management of your food and drink intake

Your body can thrive and keep you in good shape

There is not much else you need to do

Apart from cleaning your teeth and washing your skin daily

If you neglect to wash yourself then others will very soon notice

Decomposed sweat on your skin smells terrible

Nothing worse than being on a crowded city metro train

Next to somebody holding the bar up high

Their smelly unwashed armpit area close to your nose

BO hangs around looking for a nose to invade

You have no escape and have to suffer until they get off the train

Bad breath is another annoying byproduct of human existence

There is no way of telling from a distance

People do not wear warning signs about their bad breath

They may appear to be clean without a trace of BO

But when you get close their dead dragon breath will knock you over

You have to find an invented excuse to get away fast

Babies are another never ending source of pungent odors

They look so sweet and adorable to passing humans

But their parents know its a different story

Babies often reject their food with projectile vomit aimed at a parent

Parents walk around smelling like baby vomit

Often with tell tale  half digested milk stains on the clothes

Think of it as the parental badge of honor

Parents soon get immune to the smell but others stay well away

Their only friends are those with babies who are also used to the smell 

Babies can convert food almost instantly into disgusting liquid feces 

It can look like mustard but knock you out faster than mustard gas

I remember so well looking at my first born child and thinking

Why is this sweet little innocent cute baby girl producing such foul odors

Is it a defense mechanism to keep predators away

Is it a test of my parental love for my child

Will she outgrow these habits when she gets older

Thankfully she did outgrow those habits and went to be a beautiful woman

She got her payback when she had to look after her own baby

Its not easy being a dad

Ian Hunter2 Comments

Its not easy being a dad

Babies are hard to read

You have to guess a lot

Try to keep them happy

Sometimes you guess right

Other times they cry a lot

Babies often cling to their mother

Dads can feel they are superfluous at times

Dads worry about their babies 

its not easy being a dad

Toddlers are more fun

They ask lots of questions

Soak up knowledge like sponges

But most dads have to work long hours

Leaving little time to be with their young kids

Missing many important days in their lives

Dads regret not being there for them more often

Dads are too proud to ask for parenting advice

Dads have to provide for the whole family

Dads have to fix up the house and the car

Do all the manly things while still finding time to be a parent

Its tough being a dad

Teenagers are really hard work

Rebelling and testing boundaries

Soft dads give in too much

Their kids get out of control

Tough dads make a stance

Dishing out the discipline when needed

Risking that their kids will pull away from them

But praying they will turn out right

Dads get no awards for just being a dad

You are still a dad when your kids are all grown up

Hoping they plot a good course in life

Now giving fatherly advice only when asked

Wondering what kind of parents your own kids will be

Did you really leave a lasting impression on them

Did you guide them into better opportunities than you had

Could you have been a better dad for them

You cannot turn the clock backwards

Its not easy being a dad