Manhood to 'Parent'hood

I hate George Bush ufffd like the rest of the Third World, but I'm in full agreement with a statement credited to him: "I've been to war. I've raised twins. If I had a choice, I'd rather go to war."

So, I'm dedicating this column to a cause that has occupied most of my waking hours, apart from office, in the last 21 months: Parenting. I can tell you that it is something I take very seriously ( ufffdthat I have no choice is a different matter).

Hah, procreation and fathering children is nothing new, so why does it deserve a column, you may say. But it is a big deal for us modern-day men, we have to cope with a lot that my ancestors didn't even dream about. My wife is a working woman and I have twins, so that makes it so much tougher.

It is an understatement to say my days have changed after my twin sons arrived into this world ufffd with their war cries announcing their reign (and end of mine?). So what has changed? A brief list here, which some of my peers will be familiar with:

I am a man who loves his sleep. But after kids, no lazy mornings, no eight hours of shut-eye. You make do with what you get.

Before kids, holidays were all about being a couch potato. Now, there is rationing of my television time, for two reasons ufffd first, my wife doesn't want kids to get addicted to TV and second, kids think the way to watch TV is to flip channels at the rate of four channels/minute.

I never used to worry about food. My first meal was at 3 pm. Now, I need to worry about their breakfast ufffd so do I make roti, dosa, idli or omelet? They decide, I comply.

In a similar vein, I don't remember the last time I had dinner at home before midnight.

u00a0Morning coffee with wife is a rarity as is an outing or dinner with friends.

I can go on, but the point I'm trying to make is that your whole world changes after children. I had heard this before, but never realised how much till it happened to me.

So, after day's work, while my friends visit the pub or watch the latest flicks at a multiplex, I'm home singing Baana dariyalli surya jari hoda ( kannada lullaby ) or I like the flowers depending on their demands - another change by the way. Never thought I was a "singing" man, now I need to sing for an hour straight if I want them to sleep.u00a0

So do I regret the changes ufffd loss of sleep, no time to watch crime news on TV, no long trips on bike? Predictably the answer is a big no. It's that crazy thing called love.