Celebrate Fatherhood: I Am No Superman - Sakura Haruka

Sakura Haruka is not a blog just about celebrating motherhood. It shares the joys {& frustrations!} of parenting and of families as a whole. Inspired by my hubby's thoughts on being a dad, Celebrate Fatherhood is thus a monthly series where daddies from all walks of life?share insights about?what fatherhood means to them, and how we can appreciate their role in a family too.

I sincerely thank all those who took the time to guest post for me. Most of those I approached were very supportive and enthusiastic about this new series, sharing my belief that being an involved dad, and getting the dads involved, is important in building a strong family. If you have a story to share, please email me at sakuraharuka {at} live {dot} com.

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Back in 1994 (gosh, this is depressing) when I was a hot-blooded teenager, something happened to me which I least expected. No, not getting attached. But it's The Lion King. And it made me cry.

At the movies. For the first time in my life, a cartoon made me cry.

We had very very limited snail-paced internet access then, and of course no YouTube. So the only places where we could catch movie trailers were on TV or in the cinemas. And I hadn't seen the trailer prior to the movie. So I had absolutely NO idea what was in store.

The movie started happily enough, animals prancing & singing together in a circle of life and Simba showing what an irritable little brat he is. Why, he even sings about how he Just Can't Wait To Be King. To me, it sounded kind of like "I wish my dad would hurry up and die so that I can become king."

But I digress.

More importantly though, the stampede scene ripped me into pieces. I mean, Mufasa IS the king... THE Lion King right? So how can the father die???

For me, seeing baby Simba nuzzling his head under the arm of his dead father is enough to cause lifelong trauma. Of course, that Scar burdens Simba with the notion that he caused his own father's death is just a generous dash of salt in the open wound.

Rewind to last year.

The wifey and I had brought Ash & Ayd to catch The Lion King musical at Marina Bay Sands then. And before that, I had to scour the video shops in the whole of Singapore just to get a copy of the DVD. I just had to prep them beforehand. You know, the don't-wish-that-your father-dies-because-it-just -might-happen bit.

Oh, and of course the death of Mufasa too. They certainly handled it better than I did. They were quite noticeably disturbed, but recovered fast enough to laugh heartily when Pumba farted loudly in the following scenes.

But this wasn't about them. It is about me. I got emotional all over again when the stampede part came along. AGAIN!

Then a few weeks back, the boys requested to watch The Lion King on DVD once again. I couldn't help but join in the viewing as well. And surprise surprise, I cringed again when the same part rolled along. Seriously, you would think I would be adequately immunised by now.

But noooo, the stampede still gets to me. And then it hit me like a pack of Wildebeests - I understand how Mufasa felt.

He jumped straight into the middle of a stampede, at the risk of his own life, to save his son. He did that, without an ounce of hesitation. Call it parental instinct. And in the current stage of my life, where I have 3 young-lings to nurture and protect, this scene took on a much deeper meaning for me than ever before.

Fatherhood is not about being invincible. Anyone can be a Father, but to be a real Daddy, that IS hard work. Being a Daddy is digging your nose and smelling poop because you forgot to wash your hands after the last diaper change. Being a Daddy is staying up all night with the baby, so that the Mummy can get a full night?s sleep every now and then. Being a Daddy is giving them a piggyback ride even after a back-breaking day at work, instead of dismissing them with a ?Later, Daddy?s busy now.?

I am not Mr. Incredible. Just because I can out-run, out-lift and out-think my monkies now, they think that I have super powers. That I am a super hero. But I am not.

I am no Superman.

BUT, I will be their Mufasa. And I will pounce on anything that comes between me and my cheekiemonkies.

*****

Kelvin Ang is a Daddy Blogger at Cheekiemonkies, and blessed owner of 3 kids, 2 terrapins & 1 fabulous wife - who says parenting can't be fun? Watch him get twirled around their fingers as the whole family explore new activities for kids & more!

Bambi, Dumbo, The Lion King, Nemo... all these cartoons can teach us one thing - that a parent's love knows no bounds. Some people think parents are superheroes to take on the many responsibilities to care for another being, while some people think it's all just part of human nature. Whatever it is, I think the love for our children gives us strength against all hardships, yet makes us weak against their cries. And that may be the supernatural thing about parenthood.

Source: http://www.sakuraharuka.com/2012/11/celebrate-fatherhood-i-am-no-superman.html

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