
In May, I posted some of my favorite quotes about motherhood and how I’ve come to see motherhood with a vastly different perspective in the years since Ethan was diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder, in my post Mother Love. I thought it would be fun to put together a similar post for Father’s Day, because I can guarantee that my husband now views “fatherhood” differently than before, too.
Let’s start with a little humor…
A father carries pictures where his money used to be. ~Author Unknown
Now this one made me Laugh Out Loud! My instinct tells me that the phrase was probably written by someone raising a typical child or teenager with standard needs and expenses. But, raising a child with ASD is exponentially more expensive! I know many parents who have sold their homes, emptied savings and college accounts, used up retirement savings and still went into debt to pay for necessary therapies, interventions, special diets and treatments. While this isn’t funny – in the least – it is humorous (I think) in the sense that I stumbled across this quote and thought to myself, “Awww, sweet Mr. ‘Author Unknown’ probably doesn’t know the half of it!”
But in all seriousness, “fatherhood” is much, much more than a fat wallet or a hefty paycheck.