Every
kid needs a mentor. Everybody needs a mentor.
Donovan
Bailey
We’ve probably all heard
the comments, of how boys have few male role models thanks to the absentee
fathers. This is the main reason why we have today men who don’t know how to be
good men, men of character and integrity. Personally? I don’t buy it.
That would mean any man
raised by a single mom, by a dad who has to work double shifts just to make
ends meet, the sister raising her little brother, or any other combination of
alternate family would predestine the boy to grow up into a less than
worthwhile man. It also means that any
boy raised with an ever present father will automatically become a good man.
And both cases, as we’ve seen in life, are bullshit.
Do boys need a good male
role model? Absolutely! Does it HAVE to be the father? It would be nice, but
not necessarily. You see, male role models come in every single shape and size,
ever profession and every social class. Just look back at your own life. What
man showed you what it meant to be a good man? It’s might have been the sports
coach, the school teacher, the martial arts instructor, your first manager,
your counselor, your drill sergeant, or simply your next door neighbor.
Male role model and
mentors are nothing more than the man who shows you by example how to be a good
man. It’s about giving boys hope, that they can be more than they are now. It’s
about minimizing the gap between the boy they are now and the man they could be
in the future. It’s not about pointing out everything that kids today do wrong,
but about showing them what they could be if they tried to do things right.
And on the flip side,
being an example to these boys keep us in check, something we desperately need
as well. They remind us that our actions have meaning, to reconsider every time
we want to quit, to do the right thing every time we’re given options, and to
walk the path of the righteous man. Nothing keeps someone walking the straight
and narrow as knowing they make a difference in someone’s life.
You might think that
you’re not role model material, or that it’s unfair to place that kind of
responsibility and burden upon your shoulders. Guess what. You don’t really
have a choice in the matter. You’re actions will either be an example or a
justification to the actions of those who come up behind you. Realizing this
means you own up to every single action, attitude, and decision you make in
your life. No longer are you living for yourself, but rather you start living
for everyone else within society.
You want a world full of
great men? You want men to walk within a positive life? You want boys who can
make a difference? Start by being a great man, walking a positive life, and
make a difference. If you’re lucky, someone will be watching and taking notes.
