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Stephen Nicholas, AP Photo/Gail Burton
If I may, I'd like to step from behind the curtain for just a moment--one day, if you will--to write from a more personal and first-person perspective.
I take what I do here very seriously--just ask my wife, who more times than I can count has at one in the morning gotten up to close the bedroom door because the sound of my banging away on the keyboard in the living room isn't exactly lullaby-like.
But by 'seriously', I mean I try to always remain independent, objective, and professional in what I write regarding the Atlanta Falcons. Judging by the comments I frequently receive (thanks by the way!) I'd like to think I've done a fair job of this.
About three months ago I wrote an article about Atlanta's linebacker Stephen Nicholas. In it I wrote, "Nicholas, the son of a preacher, is familiar with answered prayers. He's in the NFL because of one. And now, he looks to be the answer to Falcons' fans linebacker prayers for the 2009 season."
As it turns out, Nicholas is very familiar with answered prayers and they have nothing to do with being on the football field.
As it turns out, for Nicholas, being on the football field is simply an added perk to a life that features his son, Stephen Jr., whose presence in his and his wife's life is the very definition of an answered prayer.
A story came out today by my colleague, friend, and mentor Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com about Stephen Nicholas.
Occasionally journalists have the opportunity to tell a story that few know or are familiar with. Yasinskas has done just that, penning the story of a family faced with a nightmare that only parents can imagine: the knowledge that your child is life-threateningly ill.
Sure, anyone can relate to a loved one's struggle to survive, but a mother and father have the unique ability to put themselves in the place of parents whose children are injured or ill.
It's a position that encourages a variety of feelings. Grief for the afflicted parents, relief of the knowledge that your own child is in good health, and the shudder-to-think feelings of imagining your own child having to face such things.
But this Father's Day is filled with blessings for Nicholas and his family because his story has a happy ending. His young son found a heart and endured a successful transplant and now, at 18-months-old, his son sounds a lot like one I know.
On Sunday I'll celebrate my second Father's Day and as I read about the Nicholas family I couldn't help but think about my own son.
Surely I'm not the only father to think this, but in my eyes, mind, and heart, my son is the most unique, special, and coolest kid around. You could say I'm biased and I wouldn't argue with you at all.
From the chair of the journalist, being able to be balanced and unbiased is about as valuable a tool as any.
But the job of a father is one of many biases. It's equal parts cheerleader, teacher, motivator, adventurer, and story-teller.
And it's a lot of fun.
That's why when I hear a story about a father like Stephen Nicholas, my heart is warmed because a father got to continue to share his life with his child and, as I tell people often, being a father is one of the coolest jobs around.
I often think about my own father when I consider the job of a father and my future with my son.
There's halftime of the recreational-league basketball game when he gave a locker room speech that in my mind rivals the "Win one for the Gipper" gem.
Or the elaborate ghost stories he would make up for me and my friends in the dark of summer to literally scare the sleep out of us. I will never be able to forget the Cape Fear Troll or the Brown Mountain Lights.
And of course, literally one of my favorite days as a teenager, when, out of the blue, my father came home early from work, told me to get ready, and promptly took me to the music store a few towns over. There he spent what was likely an entire paycheck on the drum set of my dreams.
What I've realized about being a father is that while moments like those mean so much to the child, they mean equally as much to the father, perhaps even more so. Therein lies the beauty of fatherhood.
So on this Father's Day, I hope Stephen Nicholas, all the fathers on the Atlanta Falcons (a great story about one of them can be found here), my father, my father-in-law (a different kind of father, but appreciated nonetheless), and all the fathers everywhere enjoy their day.
If they're anything like me and the fathers in my life, they appreciate that one day out of the year set aside to honor them, but they realize that for them, every day is Father's Day.
Now, if you'll excuse me, my son and I have a date with the swimming pool.
I always love to hear what you've got to say. Leave a comment or email me: jdanielcox@gmail.com. Click "subscribe" to receive emails whenever a new article is posted. Follow me on Twitter
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