In honour of the men in our lives

LeeHoffmann

Today is apparently International Men´s Day. Another poster (thank you Sharrow!) supplied the following links (link 1, link 2)on another thread. The issue of promoting positive male role models and tackling negative portrayals was highlighted on both sites and it is something I hear men complain about regularly (particularly in the media). So, in honour of this day and the good men in our lives, I thought we could focus on this one particular issue here in TLL. Who do you know that you would consider a positive male role model? What makes him so? What traits, mannerisms etc do you love, respect and admire in the men you know?

I´ll go first...
my Dad...completely dedicated to his family. He protected us fiercely and loved us tenderly. He thought me how to think critically. He was an amazing listener. He was full of compassion and went out of his way to help lots of people, but never even talked about it. He was a great role model for my brothers and male cousins (who always looked up to him) - he taught them how to express and deal with their emotions in a positive way and encouraged them to cry when they needed to. Having such a great male role model in my life probably also taught me to recognise good men, and helped me to choose my wonderful husband - who I know will one day be a wonderful role model for our children.

Anyone else?

Cerulean Chicken

Nothing to add (nothing as nice as that anyway!) but just wanted to say it must be lovely to have a Dad like that

baby and crumble

Great idea for a thread!

My Dad is someone who has been quite an influence on my life. He, like everyone, has had challenges and things to overcome but he has always done so in order to give us the best possible life he could. He worked any and every job he could, and made huge sacrifices to see us go to the best school and to university.

He taught me skills like photography (going into great detail on the science side so I understood the photography process, not just how to get the result I want), and he never assumed I wouldn't be interested in something just because i'm a girl. He brought me camping, showed me how to fish... Mostly though he taught me to never take what people say as being the 'truth'- always question what people say. He taught me it's ok to have strong opinions, but you need to be able to argue why you have those opinions, and also that if someone debates it well enough, there is no shame and nothing wrong with changing those opinions. Sticking to views which have been shown to be in error or illogical is far worse.

He showed that himself when I came out and he had to radically review his opinion on gay people. No longer were they weirdos that happened in cities, nor were they all women who look like men. He showed his love and compassion in accepting me as I am and my partner who he now has a big old soft spot for!!

Having said that, he also showed me my biggest faults, because they are also mine. So I can see that thanks to him, and try and do my best to alleviate the effects they have on other people.

Also both my brothers are awesome.

Morag

To all the wonderful men in my life, thank you for being in my life and making it richer and more interesting, for being passionate and being willing to argue with me and for never making me feel less due to my gender, I hope I never make you feel that way either due to your gender. P.S. you all have lovely bottoms.

Lucyfur

This is LOVELY!!

My boyfriend. He is amazing. He came into my life at a time when I was hurt, scared, scarred and one million other emotions. He has shown me a love that I thought did not exist for me. He has build me up in confidence. And he has single handedly picked me up off the floor when I was so low that I didn't want to get out of bed.
He makes me laugh everysingleday. He loves me, and tells me so every day. He drives me crazy at times and there is not one thing I would wish different about him.

My son. Such a kind and caring young man. He amazes me every day. I'm enjoying every minute of watching him grow and develop. I love listening to him, I love how passionate he is. He's only 10 and he has know what he wants to be when he grows up for 3 years now. Many have ''praised'' my parenting skills but they don't realise that it's him doing the hard work. It's him that strives to achieve all the things that doctors said he wouldn't be able to do.

Love my men:D

Tigger99

My brother is beyond cool.

I haven't always treated him well, in fact there's times when I've been a complete biatch to him, but he was fantastic when i broke up with my boyfriend and was having a meltdown about something IT related. He was so patient and a great support. There's a lot more than that but it really made me aware of the healthy male support that I have in my life.

I've never told him this & he'll prob die if he reads this but thanks

Princess Peach

My grandad. Sweetest man ever. My mother actually lived with her parents her whole life until they passed away, and I am so grateful for that. It was wonderful having him downstairs my whole childhood. Telling old stories about the time he accidentally poisoned a goat feeding him palm, which he thought would be good for him since its a holy plant :pac: And how he crashed the first ever car in our town when he saw it parked on a hill and hopped in for a go! Watching Mr Bean till we thought he might have a heart attack from laughing. And when he would sneak chocolate right after his blood sugar level was taken.

And I loved when I got older learning of what a great man he had been. I never fully understood when I was 11, why his death was on the news, and why his funeral was broadcast. It was great when I did a research project on him to learn of his amazing life, and his passion for his beliefs. I only wish I could talk to him once at an age when I can understand these things.

And my Dad, Mr Ironman! 30 years older than me but could run to the moon before I could run to the corner! Always has my back, does whatever he can to provide for me, even if often it was just in the form of emotional support. But I know how proud of me he is, as he says it so often. I'll always remember the songs he wrote for me, the melodic Dolly in the Bath, and I Lost my Teddy Bear :pac: He is such a funny and kind man, don't think there's a person he ever met that didn't like him! Can't wait for Christmas Eve, drinking till they kick us out

My boyfriend, best thing in my life. I genuinely can't think of a single day in our relationship that he hasn't made me smile and laugh and feel loved. He is the kindest, most caring, silliest boyfriend I have ever had. He is my rock and believes in me no matter how much of a mess I am! We synch up in so many ways, everything is just always so easy with us. And he is such a great guy, will help anyone out, a friend to all.

I feel so lucky

Bubblefett

Aw this is a lovely thread

My dad, who I adore. He gave up an amazing job he loved because it made him work abroad most of the year and he couldn't stand not seeing me grow up. He's fircely proud that he gave me my first bottle (because my mom was too ill). He used to take me out every saturday for lunch and to go explore the local junk market for years. He's the only one who always believes in me, completly and totally. I'd be lost without him.

Twee.

A mention to my daddy He's the best. He's always supported me, never pushed me too hard at school/college, let me go at my own pace etc. I'm very grateful for this as I have seen friends who were tormented by their parents to do better, study harder, get all the As in exams. He's always worked hard, and I'm happy that it's in an industry he enjoys. He's great at his job

I wasn't overly concerned with my graduation, but on the day he told me how proud he was of me and that made it all worthwhile. He's so proud to have seen all three of his kids through college and out the other end!

I love my brothers, they're great men! We get along quite well now that we're grown up

And my boyfriend. He makes me feel special, makes me laugh, has been there for me when bad things have happened, surprises me, treats me with respect, but also like a princess

To the men! Cheers!

cookiexx

My Dad.

Because I know that he is flawed, I know that he has made mistakes in his life but I know that he loves me more than life itself and I know that he is always there.

And in a world where I seem to meet nothing but unreliable, flaky, selfish men, that's the one thing that gives me faith that there are good ones out there.

Das Kitty

My husband for showing me what a father should be and being the best partner a person could hope for.

My son being a joy and a challenge and loving life and learning in such an inspiring way.

My brothers for their, sometimes erring, solidarity, but constant love.

My step dad for making my mum happy at last.

My brothers in law and father in law for being so generous and accepting of me into their family.

My male friends from every area of my life for being open to sharing the good times and bad with me and our other friends. For giving and accepting support and for being up for craic at a moment's notice. (Thanks to one of them in particular for making a 'bitty' joke when I was really struggling to breastfeed and making me laugh and realise that I was getting obsessed. He didn't know how much he was helping me at the time. B, thanks for being a big gross-ball. You're fab)

LeeHoffmann

Everyone comments on how genuine my husband is. It would be nearly impossible for somebody not to like him - he´s just so easy to be around and get along with. He´s so loving, gentle and understanding - not just with me, but with everyone. He´s also really intelligent but in very different ways to me. His silliness and focus on the present balance my seriousness and tendency to over-think things and worry. In short, he puts the fun into every day and takes care of people when they need it. His gentleness, maturity and sense of fun make him a fantastic role model and ambassador for his gender IMO. I´m really proud of him

My brother always supports the underdog and stands up for the weakest people in the group. He´s also very committed to providing a good example to younger people (children and teenagers), and he properly considers other people´s opinions even when they´re completely at odds with his (something I don´t see too often tbh). I love these things about him.

Eve_Dublin

I hate men. :mad:



Joking!!



My dad: The funniest, cleverest man I know who brought the 5 of us up after my mam died young in her life, then watched nearly all of us emigrate out of the country but would do anything for any of us, even at this distance. I miss him terribly.

Michael D Higgins: The only honest politician in our country and a man of such integrity, passion and drive for change. He's never been afraid to stand up for what he believes and I've always admired his balls to speak his mind. He's a genuine inspiration for me. I'm very proud to call him my president.


My boyfriend who is over at his dad's as we speak dressing him and getting him to bed. His dad was diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year and he's been a rock for him every day. He's the kindest, most solid, even tempered man I know. He's always been there for me and for all his friends and family even though his own life is tough right now with unemployment and his dad. There's "nice" guys and good guys and he's one of the latter. Everyone who knows him loves him. I'm proud to call him my boyfriend.

An old friend of mine. Both his brother and dad died in the space of a couple of months but the cliche, "what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger" applies this man. He's brimming with positivity and a lust for life that makes him so loveable. He's always been there for me when others might've forgotten. And he's such unbelievable craic. I really miss him. Hope we live in the same country again in the future.

There's so many more important men in my life but these are the ones that stand out for me. Hurray for all the good men in the world!!

Rubberlegs

This thread is lovely:)

It does make me long for more men in my life!!
I have no brothers and no sons. No close male relatives at all:(
But I did have a great Dad, who I miss every day.
And himself, of course!! There when I need him, and when I could batter him:D.

sarah42012

My older brother is easily one of the kindest people I have ever met.
Hes always had my back and we've managed to stay close despite living on opposite sides of the world at times!!

Dunno what I'd do without him, love ya bro!

CathyMoran

My daddy (very ill at the moment in ICU) is the platonic love of my life, he taught me what a man should be like which is why I married my husband and have my son. All these men are wonderful.

LeeHoffmann

Wishing your Dad a speedy recovery Cathy