That period of time was not good for him, and I am to blame for that. In MY hurt and MY pain, I could NOT be the father that I needed to be for him.
Bill,
I agree with most of your post..... We do NEED to take the hand we were dealt.... and do the best we can with it... We did NOT choose this path...... Our spouses did....
I disagree with what I quoted above.... You are way too hard on yourself... You needed to deal with this life changing event.... You had emotions.... That is 100% fine to show your son.... You were dealing with it... Allow yourself to be human in front of your children at times.... It is VERY humbling to be seen in these moments... As a hurting person... Not a big macho man... But, that is what a REAL MAN is.... I think we as fathers are not modeling proper male behavior for our sons if we act macho 100% of the time....
Sometimes, the situation dictates we take care of ourselves before we are able to help others..... That is just the way it is...
Take Care,
NMD
"Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. That is what makes a marriage last --more than passion or even sex!" - Simone Signoret
