January is a month to set goals to reach dreams and achieve some level of success.
I remember a couple of years ago I was in the car with my mother, Step Dad #1 and my stepsister. We rode by a Mercedes-Benz dealership and Step Dad #1 got hype like a kid in a candy store looking at this white coupe perched up on the platform, beaming form the son above the lot. At 42 years old he was enamored with this vehicle and proclaimed that one day he would have it and he was going to be riding through the hood “Stuntin’”.
I knew my mother was thinking it. I felt her thinking it. And I for damn sure was thinking it, because as much as I hate to admit it sometimes, I am my mother’s child. Thankfully, it wasn’t either of us that said “Daddy? Stuntin’? REALLY? You 42 out here talking bout some STUNTIN’?” accompanied with the heartiest, dream crushing laugh.
Step Dad #1 has 5 children and 3 grandchildren and at the time he was still paying child support for at least 2 of his children.
That moment never left me. Initially, like my stepsister I was judging him, but slowly that judgment transformed into empathy. He was 42 years old and had been somebody’s daddy for more than half his life. He missed his moment to stunt on ‘em, and he wasn’t ready to let it go.
He has an E Class Benz now. It may not have been a wise investment, but for him, it symbolizes success.
I used to want a Cadillac. I still do, I hope that I earn it before I’m 42, so I won’t be Stuntin’ like my Daddy.
But then again, I don’t see cars as a sign of success anymore.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
dealingwithdaddyissues 