I am blessed to know men who absolutely adore their children. Since my own father was absent almost all of my life, I turned to other figures to understand what a man is supposed to be like. Growing up, teachers were often the ones who filled that gap. There were several examples who offer me encouragement in my abilities and saw potential that I otherwise would not have.

Now as an adult, it is the friends who are also fathers that I continue to learn from. Those like Jim, who goes to work early each day to complete extra training so that he can be home in time for dinner, playtime, and bedtime with his girls. Or Will who will spend hours creating Lego machines with his sons. Or Michael, a man made out of dad jokes and totally wrapped around the littlest finger of his daughter.

These men are teaching their kids that they are worthy of love by sharing time with them every chance they get. And they are teaching them how to love one another. These children will be amazing grown ups one day, and maybe parents as well. I look at their fathers, grateful for the example they offer to me and for the leadership they are giving to our future generations.

“We are the spark, that will light the fire that’ll burn the First Order down” (Poe Dameron, Star Wars: The Last Jedi). – #52sparks is my year-long writing series for 2020, based on an art prompt challenge. The spark that lights a fire to toast a marshmallow or to ravage a forest begins in the space of an inch. This series is to explore what hundreds of inches and words can do.