Love, Guilt and Fatherhood

I have to admit to being a big fan of Morning Joe! Every morning as I work out, Joe and Mika get my political juices churning! Joe Scarborough has a son in the autism spectrum. This morning he interviewed Ron Fournier who also has a son in the autism spectrum. Ron is with the National Journal and a former White House Correspondent. He did a personal essay for the National Journal, “How Two Presidents Helped Me Deal With Love, Guilt and Fatherhood.” That was what the Morning Joe interview as about today: Ron’s road trip with his son, Tyler, to meet with Presidents Bush and Clinton.
 
Here is an excerpt from Ron’s essay within which is the video of the Morning Joe interview and a link to the entire story that I highly recommend.

“On the trips to Arkansas and Texas, I saw through both Presidents a successful future for Tyler—in Clinton, big possibilities for a boy with a sharp mind and rough edges. In Bush, Tyler’s gift of humor as a means to find confidence in himself and connections with others. I learned that while Tyler was not my idealized son, he was the ideal one. In the Oval Office, years ago, I thought Bush had ordered me to “love that boy” in spite of his idiosyncrasies. Now, I realize, I love my son because of them.”
 
The entire essay: http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/how-two-presidents-helped-me-deal-with-love-guilt-and-fatherhood-20121129
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