Father’s Day: An Ode to Jake

When the bones are good, the rest don’t matter…yeah the paint could peel, the glass could shatter. Let it rain, ’cause you and I remain the same. When there ain’t a crack in the foundation, baby I know any storm we’re facing will blow right over while we stay put. The house don’t fall when the bones are good.

Although I hear people speak to the huge, sometimes insurmountable difficulties marriage can bring, I have to admit…I have very little experience on that front. And don’t misunderstand me – it has virtually nothing to do with me.

I happened to have married one of the most selfless humans on the planet.

This is perhaps my greatest achievement.

You see Jake is no ordinary pediatrician-informatician-ADNP ambassador-father of five-husband. He is the dad who has changed 50% *more* diapers than me (despite working outside the home). He puts four of our five kids to bed every night, without fail. He does dishes and laundry without ever being asked. He encourages my independence. He rejects the idea of “babysitting” his own children. He stands for women and has no qualms calling out patriarchy, bigotry, racism, and hate. He is the first to apologize. He is willing to revisit issues others write off. He can look at difficult situations through multiple fresh, new perspectives.

Put simply, he places everyone’s needs before his own.

So when I say this marriage thing is not difficult, it is because Jake makes life easy.

And I don’t deserve him.