Part-Time vs Full-Time Parents

The weekend weather lately in New England has been
miserable with February being the snowiest
on record. Its doesn’t exactly motivate me to
throw my nice clothes on and go boogying. Besides,
when I have my son for the weekend, I just like to
focus on spending quality time with him. We’ve been
renting movies, going to arcades, and sledding. To me,
there’s no better way to take your mind off of
work and stress than chillin with my son. It helps
me to get my bearings straight again and realize
the things you shouldn’t take for granted.

As much as it tears me up to drop him off Sunday
night, I actually feel like I am devoting more
attention and quality time with him than some
married fathers I know. Many parents are so wrapped
up in work, the gym, and mindless television that
they don’t realize what little token time is left
to spend with their kids. As a single parent father,
when you’re forced to compress all your time together
with your child into a concentrated 48-hour
capsule, you tend to make the most of it.

I would venture to say that some married fathers
may spend less cumulative time with their children
in an entire week than some single fathers during
just their weekend visitation. I don’t think it’s
a conscious choice, but just a pattern that creeps
up on even the most well-intentioned dads. This
isn’t an indictment on all full-time fathers or sour
grapes on my part. As with any twists in life,
unfortunately you sometimes get to see circumstances
from “both sides of the fence”: part-time single
father versus full-time married father.

I’m sure many single parent fathers have reached the
same conclusion on their own. If they haven’t ever
mulled over it yet, can understand how this could
come to be. As the cliche saying goes, you don’t
truly appreciate something until it’s taken away from
you. Obviously, there are divorce arrangements whereby
joint physical custody exists and I’m sure many
single parents form even stronger bonds with their
children under these circumstances. I guess my main
point is hopefully full-time parents truly cherish
and carve out meaningful time with their children
rather than take that time for granted since they
are always under the same roof.

Another warning for the cliche police: as the children
get older and in their teens, I’m sure its even more
challenging to carve out that time or even have them
want to be seen with their parents! This applies whether
you’re a full-time or part-time parent! This is just
a fact of life dating back to any generation.