Thinking Archives - A Father of Twin Boys

Sons, I want you to listen to this one piece of advice, always think! Think before acting. Think before speaking. Think before doing. Thinking is a crucial part of growing up and adapting to life.

I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life because I didn’t stop to think before acting. I’ve lost friends and loved ones because I reacted first instead of stopping and thinking first. Now, not all of those losses were necessarily bad, but some where. Some I wish that I could go back in time and do differently.

As you grow up, you’ll make mistakes, just as we all have and continue to do. But, I ask you to do something that no one ever taught me to do, reflect on those mistakes and ask yourself one question. Ask yourself, would you do that again? Would you respond like that again? Would you act that same way? Would you treat that person the same way? If your answer is yes, then move on. If your answer is no, make amends with that person.

Think through your decisions first, that is a valuable piece of advice that I can give you as your father.

Recently, I made a mistake with your mother. Was it bad? Yes, yes it was. Could it have been worse, HECK YES! But did I learn something? YES! I learned a valuable lesson that I need to stop and think before acting. So, learn from my mistakes in life. Learn when you should act vs. react. And learn to stop and think before doing, trust me, it will save you a lot of headaches and heartaches in life.

Love, Dad

There are two words that I love hearing more than anything “DOWN TIME”. These are two words that I love to hear from others and that I love saying, because we all need it. We all need to slow down and sometimes just think out loud.

A few nights ago my wife and I were discussing life, where we are, somethings that we needed to talk about that were bothering us, etc. And as we were talking I realized that it is ok to think out loud and express thoughts and concerns and feelings. Sometimes you just have to let it go.

Lately, without going into a back story here, I’ve had to think out loud a lot with friends. I’ve needed to share somethings with them that I just had to get off my chest. And I needed for them to be my sounding board and to just listen. I am fortunate that there is a core group of guy friends that we can do this with. We can text or call and just say, “I need to vent and I need you to listen.” What that really means, I need to think out loud for a minute and I don’t need interruptions or opinions unless asked. This group of friends have been able to listen, provide feedback and suggestions and basically, be what friends should be, there for me and I for them.

So in a few weeks, one of my good friends and myself are going down to his lake cabin and just relax. And I can’t believe how exciting I am about going to the trip. I’ll be able to cook and we’ll just laugh and think out loud. It is going to give me a chance to step away from life and rest.