In the eyes of a child, love is a four-letter word spelled TIME. Here’s how I know… I can remember the day my 12-year-old son brought home an assignment he completed in school about “Why I have the best Dad in the world.”
As I read his assessment of me as a father, I was quickly reminded that the repetitive reason he gave for why he thinks I’m the best dad in the world boiled down to one main thing – because I invest time into him and our family. The reasons he noted were:
- Dad takes the time to encourage me when I’m feeling down.
- Dad spends time on his day off to mow lawns.
- Dad takes the time to help me study for my tests.
- Dad spends time taking our family on trips.
- Dad gives me personal time by taking me by myself camping.
I was humbly reminded of why I’m ‘the world’s greatest dad’ in the eyes of my child – because to him, love is spelled TIME.
I like to think of TIME this way:
T – ake
I – ntentional
M – oments
E – veryday
Charles Francis Adams once wrote these words in his diary: “Went fishing with my son today–a day wasted.” His son, Brook Adams, also kept a diary, and on that same day, wrote: “Went fishing with my father–the most wonderful day of my life!”
The time we spend with our kids means the world to them. I wouldn’t have thought of anything that my son listed above as being a big deal… but to him it was!
If every parent would intentionally give their children the time of day, every day, that they need, every child in the world would get the love they deserve.
We all have the same amount of time in a day – just 24 hours. No one gets more. No one gets less. Just like money, you can choose to:
- Spend it.
- Invest it.
- Squander it.
The only thing that’s for certain is that once it’s gone, you can never get it back.
The reason it’s so easy to let time escape us is because we don’t lose it in years, or even months, but in days. Like sand passing through our fingers, the days easily slip through our radar as we forget what the months and years are made of.
“Sometimes the days seem so long, but the years seem so short.”
The older my son becomes, the more I realize that my days with him are limited to help him study for his tests, to take him on father/son campouts, and to play one-on-one basketball in the driveway.
But although I know the days will be limited, the memories don’t have to be.
Question? Why wouldn’t you want to give your children the best possible childhood experience and memories that any kid could ever possibly have?
- You won’t be able to do it by what you spend on them.
- You won’t even be able to do it by what you say to them.
- You’ll primarily be able to do it by the time you’ve spent with them.
What’s the #1 thief of your time spent with your kids? TV, work, a hobby, a cellphone? Make an intentional shift with your time starting today. Give it most to the ones who need and deserve it most.
Because it all happens one… day… at a TIME – T.ake I.ntentional M.oments E.veryday with your kids. In their eyes, it might just make you ‘the best parent in the world!’
