In our house full of boys (One dad, two sons, two boy cats, a boy dog and a rotating menagerie of bugs of indeterminate gender), we hold one truth to be self-evident: mom is special. Mom doesn’t get much “girl time” at our place, but she does have seemingly unlimited opportunity to be hassled, annoyed or otherwise rebuffed by one boy or another. Thus, I have taken it upon myself to ensure that mom gets respect from her sons.

Our boys, aged 4 and 7, understand at a basic cellular level that mom is to be loved and cared for. The opportunity occasionally arises (or, put another way: not a week goes by) for me to have a little chat with one son or another. It usually goes like this, with me on my knees for eye contact, and real close to them, so they aren’t embarrassed by other people hearing our conversation:

Dad: I heard you were hassling mom.
Son: Yeah/I guess so/Yessir
Dad: Who is the most important person in our house?
Son: Mom.
Dad: Right. What do we know about mom?
Son: We love mom.
Dad: How do we show it?
Son: We don’t talk back to her.
Dad: What else?
Son: Snuggle her.
Dad: What else?
Son: Be kind to her.
Dad: Anything else?
Son: Take care of her.
Dad: Were you caring for mom when you did ‘X’?
Son: No.
Dad: Okay. You better go give mom some love.
Son: (shuffles off to hug mom and say sorry)

This probably qualifies as a bit of a rant, but I swear, one of the most important parts of raising boys is to instill in them a strong respect for women. And it starts at home. Even if your boys don’t have a mom in the house, I bet you know at least a few female candidates who’d appreciate the positive attention from your son(s).

Moms really are special. Don’t save the love for Mother’s Day.

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