Have any of you been watching the TV series Banged Up? It’s a social experiment where they have taken a number of wayward teenage lads and placed them in a prison with ex-cons to try and get them to see the error of their ways sooner rather than later.
A recent episode had them joining a group therapy session that got them to think and talk about their relationship with their fathers or father figures. Most had only poor experiences and it quickly became apparent that this was a major factor in their behaviour.
Now you may think that this week’s blog is all about the difference a father can make to their child’s upbringing - but it’s not. What I wanted to share with you is the fact that I CRIED LIKE A BABY for most of the show.
Now I know it’s OK for men to cry, or so we are told, but there has to be a good reason. For example, that part in the Italian Job when all those beautiful cars get crushed and thrown down the mountain. Or when your Xbox crashes after 3 hours solid play of Halo 3 and you realise you haven’t saved your progress. Pretty much anything that involves a man’s family jewels and an inanimate object falls into this category too.
The weird thing about it was that the emotion I felt didn’t bear any resemblance to any of the above; this was a warm feeling that flowed through me and then just poured out. It also seemed like I had no control over it.
Oh no! I was turning into a woman!!
There’s actually some truth to this - prior to this emotional breakdown, my wife had said to me that it was extremely common for men to experience heightened emotions during pregnancy, something to do with women producing a sort of a mushroom cloud of hormones that somehow traps us in the fallout.
I’m not quite sure what to make of my new (and hopefully temporary) emotions - perhaps it’s to prepare you for the some of the overwhelming feelings you are likely to experience during the birth. Either way, I’m off to the shops to get some tissues and a copy of Beaches on DVD.
(Editor’s note: Tissues? You do know there’s no nudity in Beaches, right Simon?)
Next week: Iron Maiden!
Dads Space contributor Simon Payne loves going to rock gigs, adding to his collection of Aztec tattoos, good wine, football and his PlayStation. He's also the co-founder of Mind Adrenaline, a team building and events company that specialises in organising creative days out for organisations around the globe.
He readily admits he is a bit of a late starter.