If you’ve been following along from the beginning, then you know that I wear many hats – I’m an on-camera host, standup comedian, and live-event MC and DJ (in fact, I have my own company, so feel free to check us out here). I also teach yoga.

I know, that’s a lot of things, but most importantly, I’m a husband and father. Those two hats are really the driving force behind everything else that I do.

Everything else is meaningless without Cherise and Jacob. Seriously. I knew that all along, but I experienced it when she took Jacob up to visit her parents for a weekend and I stayed back here because I was working.

What am I getting at here? Well, I’ll tell you (sorry, I tend to meander both in thought and words – I am aware of it. That, and the fact that I sometimes even see people’s eyes glaze over as I chew their ears off about some random topic. I get excited about things and I like to talk. Good for the jobs that I do, bad for the company I keep. Back to the point. Told you, I meander…)

I had an epiphany at the event that I worked on Saturday night. It was a Bat-Mitzvah for the second of 2 daughters in the family and I had already done their first daughter’s party 3 years earlier. While watching the video montage that the father had so carefully and artistically crafted that summed up this sweet girl’s first 13 years of life, I felt excited to be a part of this family’s special moment. I have always enjoyed all of the things that I do – for different reasons – and on Saturday, I realized that that’s a really good thing.

I love doing parties because I love music and I love entertaining people. I love on-camera hosting because I’ve always been fascinated by it and I know that it’s my calling. I love teaching and practicing yoga because it keeps me balanced. Standup comedy is in its own category: the ability to have your words cause a physical reaction in somebody else is virtually indescribable. Add the fact that it’s (usually) a positive and happy physical reaction and you’ve got the perfect recipe for a highly addictive activity.

Right, right. Get to the point! (I can practically hear your thoughts screaming at me)

As a role model and teacher for my son, I realized that to try and guide him towards one specific career or goal is silly. He’s going to love many things over the course of his life and I just realized that not only is that ok, we should actually encourage him to get good at and enjoy many different things. This is what makes us fully-rounded individuals. Basically, I had decided to really focus my attention on one goal. And then I realized that it’s ok to have many goals. I just need to prioritize.

If our experiences to this point serve as any indication, Jacob will go through life with so many others trying to put him in a box –  with labels and ideas of what the “perfect” job/life/career/relationship should look like and it’s our job to help him think and live outside of the box.

We need to help him see that it’s ok to have many dreams and to follow them. We will also teach him to do so responsibly, of course (one does need to make a living and contribute to society, after all), but if he decides to be an astronaut, an actor, a teacher, a fireman, an accountant, or a musician – he will have our full support (except for the astronaut one – we’d miss him too much. And a Jewish fireman? Too dangerous…)

In all seriousness, It is my mission to teach Jacob to think for himself and let his own heart be his guide. Even if that runs contrary to what I would like to see him doing. I will not let anyone put him in any box.

Well, almost any box…

“Come on in, Dad!”

Thanks for reading!

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Love,

Jacob’s Daddy