On Manhood

LabRat and BRM have done an excellent job in the past few days discussing perceptions of manhood and the problems with these perceptions.  Read all of their posts, because they put it much better than I could ever hope to.

As for myself, I have some ideas on what makes an adult human male a man:

• A man will hold the door for women, help an old lady with her groceries, and defend a ladies honor.  He does this not because women cannot do these things for themselves, but because they should never have to.
• A man will take his turn at the 3 AM feeding and diaper change.
• A man will overlook a slight against him, but will immediately apologize if he realizes he's been impolite.
• A man will sometimes act childlike, but should never act childish.
• A man will wash the grease from working on the truck off of his hands before braiding his daughter's hair.
• A man means it when he says "This is going to hurt me more than it does you"
• A man may like it when he comes home to a hot dinner, but is more than willing to cook his wife a hot meal before she comes home
• A man may be gruff, grumbly, and altogether prickly all day long, but will still be happy to read Dr. Seuss before bedtime
• A man will come home from a long day of hunting or fishing and be grateful for the healthy salad that's prepared for dinner
• A man will, without complaint, sell the sports car and the boat, drop all of his expensive bad habits, shut off the cable TV, and work three jobs if that's what it takes to put food on the table and heat in the house.  He will not do this for any reason other than it's what's expected.
• A man will recognize that his wife is perfectly capable of earning at least as much money as he does, but he will never take it for granted.  
• A man will always make sure that his wife and children know just how important they are in his life, even if he never heard it from his father.

So there you are. The DaddyBear Guide to Being  a Mensch.  Not as well thought out and articulate as others, but it's mine.