In My Father's Wake: How an Anxious Boy Learned to Love a Difficult Dad

Winner of a "2023 Christian Indie Award" from the Christian Independent Publishers Association in the Family Relations category!“Like most every boy I faithfully cultivated the expectation that my dad would be a great dad. He would love me just because I was his son. He would do fun things with me, and he would take care of me. He would be consistent, predictable and dependable. He would be proud of me and help me find what I was good at. But this expectation, this beautiful picture of relationship, was already beginning to tarnish, like an old photo that is fading from long exposure to light.By the age of five, I was already reading my father’s moods. Did the “angry dad” or the “happy dad” come home from work? What did I need to do to adjust to which dad came home from work? Why did I deserve these angry spankings? Why did I feel habitually disapproved of? Why was I continually anxious? How could one little boy deserve so much guilt and shame?The relational path that Hoot and Dave traveled will prepare you for life-changing conversations with your father, or with your child—and do it with humor rather than preaching. Read more