My Priority
If you bare with me on this post, I’m going to share something very personal. I’ve really been struggling with something, and I’ve been letting my wife down in regards to this struggle. In short, I tell her that she’s my number one priority, but my actions don’t line up. My intentions are to make her my top priority, and to do everything I can for her, our kids, our family. I really want this to be the case. Unfortunately, I’ve really been dropping the ball on proving it to her. I want badly to be the man that she needs, wants and deserves, however, I fail often.
I have no excuse. Even though our work schedules are almost opposite, and when they happen to line up we both have other responsibilities that our family depends on for survival, I have no reason why I can’t prove to her that she’s my honest-to-goodness number one priority. It’s the little bit of time that I should give fully to her, that I’ve been failing in. It’s not even like she wants that much from me, just a little effort. My effort has been completely lackluster and I owe her a huge apology. But you know what?… she doesn’t want an apology, she wants change. She wants to hear what I’m going to do and then see me do it.
The important thing to remember is this: in order for my words to mean anything, my actions must back them up. The ol’ “Put your money where your mouth is” or better yet, the famous, “Don’t just talk the talk, walk the walk.”
Our marriage isn’t perfect and those who know me know that I’m far from perfection. I run this website and blog and speak to men all over the country not in the sense that I’m trying to teach you everything there is to know about being an authentically manly man… I’m on this journey with you. I learn something new everyday, and I’m constantly working to be better. The thing that I think sets a TrueMan apart from other men is that he knows there are areas in his life where he needs to improve and he not only wants and tries to change, he takes action.
I challenge you to look at your own life and see the areas where you’re dropping the ball. Pick the ball up and get back on track. Don’t just talk the talk, walk the walk.
Man up!
What is a Woman’s Role in Helping to Create a Culture of TrueManhood?
— GUEST POST from CATHERINE DiNUZZO, MA LPC (Wife of Dave DiNuzzo) —
When Dave asked me to write a guest post on his site, I was very excited because I believe that to truly change the current situation of manliness in society and to be able to change it to a (virtuous) culture of TrueManhood, men are only a portion of the solution. Another important part in this change are women!
When I first met Dave he was not the man that he is today. Now, I am not going to say that it was because of me alone that he has decided to “change his ways”, but I will say that it was a series of challenges that I posed to him, that began his transformation into the man he is today.
Dave has always been a man who was not afraid to fight for justice and for what he believes in. However, when I met him, he was focused on doing it “Dave’s way”. I remember one time when we were dating when we got into a fight about something trivial, and he told me, “there’s Dave’s way and the wrong way”. This was the way he dealt with stuff – his way… and passionately! Now, what I have always loved about Dave is his passion and self-confidence, but this was an example of a time in his life when he was less-than-virtuous. What I feel Dave was lacking in his life when I first met him was – what I feel most men are missing – a woman to challenge and expect virtuous behavior. Looking back on it now, I don’t think Dave ever knew what to strive for because the women in his life never challenged him to obtain TrueManhood.
The question I pose is “how are we to expect men to behave a certain way, if we (women in general) lower our standards and accept mediocrity?” We simply cannot.
My goal as a guest blogger for Truemanhood.com is to help give women the tools to believe in their own value enough to expect the best out of the men in their lives. I agree whole-heartily with Dave, that if we are going to change the world, we must create a world of truly virtuous men; aka: TrueMen! Also, if we are expecting men to make this change then is it going to take the women of the world to step up and embody their roll in the change.
I hope you continue to check the site as I will be posting regularly. Please pass this along to your female friends… this is a journey that is meant for all of us.
Woman up!
~Catherine
Planned Parenthood Director Quits After Watching Abortion on Ultrasound
This is a great Pro-Life story. I often wonder how people (especially women) can lie to themselves about what’s taking place with an abortion. This woman’s story is a great testament to the power of our prayer to end the evils of abortion and the culture of death. Check out the video…
Tuesdays with Daddy – Their Life in My Hands
November 3, 2009 by admin
Filed under Blog, Fatherhood, Tuesdays with Daddy
As I’ve mentioned before, I have the distinct honor and pleasure of staying home each and every Tuesday with my two young daughters. I plan to make my time with them a regular theme of my posts on Tuesdays because so much happens in a day’s time that a good amount of it is blog-worthy.
Today, something that struck me in a way it never had before, is the fact that my daughter’s lives are in my hands. It is my responsibility to give them the love they need, that they desire and that they deserve. This idea of “what they deserve” keeps resonating with me because I could easily fail to give them that. I could easily slack off and be lazy and do the bare-minimum. If I do, their lives will be forever altered because of it. I simply can’t (and won’t) take that chance. So, when I find myself doing less than my best, I have to remember that I can’t do less than 100%; they need 100%, the deserve 100%.
I know lots of fathers and lots of great examples of men who strive for this 100%-self-giving love. You know at least one great dad in this world, hopefully your own. Take a minute over the next few days to give him (or them) a pat on the back for the good job they do or have done.
Man up!
Your Pictures – Your Stories
Something that we used to do on the blog was “Manly Picture of the Week”. It became too tedious to find pictures and I wasn’t receiving enough to keep it going, so I stopped it. It has been requested that we bring back “Manly Picture of the Week” and include a story to go along with the picture.
So, if you have pictures of you, your friends or others “doing manly stuff”, please send it to info@truemanhood.com, along with a brief story about what was going on. We will then post the pictures for all to see.
Man up!
