When my daughter was small I looked forward to giving her advice. In fact， I sincerely believe that she also enjoyed it. For the most important thing a Dad can do is get his child ready for life. Not that I ever thought I was ready but at least I have been able to survive my years， so far. She used to sit real close to me or on my lap and I would explain the mysteries of life to her. I would tell her of morals and ethics that made life as good as it can possibly be. Years later， when my daughter hit the wonderful teenaged years， she didn’t accept my advice as she did in the past. In fact， she obviously dreaded it. However， I gave it to her anyway because I wanted her to survive her teenaged years. I survived them so why shouldn’t she listen to me and take in the knowledge that I had from the experiences of my past. For years she never came to me for advice but I continued to submit it. Now that I think of it， my father did the same.
Soon， too soon， she left and started her own life. It was as though our separation necessitated that she would once again need， and seek out， my advice. At first this was a good thing， in that I appreciated the fact that she thought my wisdom was worth the time. After a while I came to the realization that I might not always be right. I started to fear my own answers to her questions.
My daughter is not the only person in my life that asks for advice. My wife does it in an odd way. I know she knows the answer to her question but it is almost as though she wants to combine mine with hers. Sometimes when I give her advice she takes it in and basically makes her own decisions. Other times she gives me that odd look that asks， “What planet were you born on？” Either way I do my best.
My parents have started to ask for my advice. This was very difficult for me to understand. Most of my life my father and mother were the ones to direct me on how I should handle certain situations. They were the ones who survived their years so that they could direct me toward correct decisions. Now the roles seem to be reversed. I guess I should take it as a compliment because this shifting of roles means that they have finally come to the realization that I am capable of making correct choices. Now， if I could only believe this same realization and finally relax in my new role.