WYND GUIDE TO GOOD FATHERING

A friend of mine is about to become a Dad, and it makes me to reflect on what kind of father I aspire to be. I think I’m pretty decent, though I’m not where I’d like to be yet.
The good things I'll do: I'll try to inspire my kids, I'll do projects with them like fixing Lego houses and chess and painting and building stuffs, I'll read to the younger ones, I'll do outdoor things with them, I'll teach them about responsibility and compassion, I'll try to set a good example for them.
But there’s always more I should be able to do, always. Actually, it’s not that I'll do more, it’s that I'll be with them in a different way.
This is the father I aspire to be:
I want to drop my expectations of them, and be more accepting of who they already are.
I want to be less controlling, and let them be.
I want to be less strict, and just be with them.
I want my actions around them to be less driven by fears, and to let them make more mistakes and have more freedom.
I want to be less focused on their future selves, and more grateful for their present selves.
I want to be the example for them: to be happy, inspired, mindful, peaceful, loving, accepting, grateful.
In the end, I will never be the perfect parent. I'll aspire to be better, but I will never reach that ideal state. I still think the aspiration is a worthy activity, if only because it causes me to reflect on my actions and see if they’re aligned with my best values.
In the end, it won’t matter if I’m perfect as a their papa or not. It will only matter if I am there for them, and if I love them, which I do with all of the depths of my heart.