I am currently listening the to This American Life a piece they call “Go Ask Your Father“. So far it is good, but I was really rubbed the wrong way by the story of Lennard Davis. The gist is that his father may not be his father. Spoiler Alert>>>his father was not his biological father. What burns me about his story was not feeling a little confused, or wanting to know for sure. I get being curious and having to process the idea that the person who raised you was not your biological parent. But that was it, he kept saying the guy who raised him was not his father. Not his Father…he never says biological father. Sure he had some problems with the guy. He even sounds like he could be a real ass, but he raised the boy the best he could. He was the man’s father, like it or not. To top it off, it takes Lennard 24 years to finally reach a definitive answer, with lots of cost and worry no doubt. Why spend so much time tracking down an answer you may not even want?
The story did make me grateful for my dad. There is no doubt I am his son, but even if there was…SO WHAT. He raised me, he was there. I cannot imagine spending anytime at all trying to prove otherwise.