Needing a Super Hero
My husband is a pastor of a church and he recently made an appointment to see the mayor of our town just to ask how the church could be of help in the community. Just before he left to see her he asked me if he should change his clothes, because although he looked smart, hidden under his respectable jersey was a Superman t-shirt. I laughed and said it would be very appropriate to rock up at the mayor's office in a Superman shirt and announce in a deep voice, "We're here to help!" It got me to thinking that our men very often are expected to be super-men. I have had more than one conversation with women who get annoyed when their men show signs of weakness. Is the man-flu that we all joke about really the men being melodramatic, or the women being hypersensitive to any moaning from our men? The thing is that life is tough and, particularly as mommies, we NEED our husbands to be strong and capable in order for us to feel like we will cope with today. When he is feeling sick, or complaining about work, or not handling the pressures of life, it is very disconcerting for the wives. We have placed ourselves in his life raft, so to speak, and we need him to look confident that it's not going to sink! As a result, many women are insensitive to their men's complaints and resentful when they are weak. But perhaps if we allow them a safe place, to lie on our bosoms and be weak for a moment, they will be that much more likely to be able to conquer the world. Even Superman needs to strip off the shirt and get some TLC every now and then!
