Battle

There are a lot of things you have to look out for when you’re a parent; not only are you responsible for your own life and safety, but you’re also responsible for ensuring the security and safety of your offspring. In most cases, the offspring are a lot more likely to stick a knife in the outlet of a wall than an adult.

Curiosity is a wonderful thing, but it can also be dangerous if left unchecked.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the responsibility I have to guard over Atlas. I watched a recent documentary and it highlighted how a serial child predator would identify their targets; they always chose children who didn’t have protective parents – specifically, a protective Dad.

Thousands of years ago, men had the responsibility of protecting their households during war.

Men used to pick up a sword and take it upon themselves to protect their family in the event attackers came.

I want you to think about this for a moment.

It’s 5am and you’re kissing your wife and children goodbye as you join the other warriors from your village. You tell them to be strong and brave while you go to fight.

You walk away and turn to look at them, perhaps for the last time.

In your hand is a weapon, and in your heart is the determination to protect your family. If you fail, your wife will be raped and your child will be burned inside of your house. When you know these things, there’s a connection the the inner part of you that will do anything, anything to keep your family safe.

The warrior goes to battle and the father allows his inner demon to take control. Gone is the man that tenderly carried his little baby boy. In his place is a blood-stained warrior who rips the heart of his enemies out of their chest and screams for the blood of more.

Gone is that nice man who tenderly opened doors, picked flowers and kissed his wife. And he needs to be, in order to return to her again.

He’s overpowered and surrounded on all sides. But he remembers the reason he fights and he calls on all of the gods to give him one last round. The enemy falls. They all fall.

The man returns to his home. His job is done.

Today, we have a 9-5, and that’s the closest anybody ever gets to a battle.

When you lose the battle, you don’t lose the spirt that is used to fight. Instead, it tries I to find another outlet, and oftentimes it manifests in fighting between two people, rather than the two protecting each other.

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

A lot changes when you view somebody as an ally, rather than adversary. Sometimes it’s a matter of asking a stranger to help to carry a couch. Other times, it’s putting aside your differences and choosing love instead of hate.

These days, we don’t fight battles with swords. However, the stakes are still just as high in our conversations as they are in the field of war, and there’s just as much to lose – if not more.