Relationship of a Father and Son Essay

The moment where everything changed was the day Manning finally won his first arm wrestling match, his father gained some respect towards him and they both learned valuable lessons. One was manning learned that his father was a great parent in his own way and his father learned that being rough isn’t the only way you can show affection to your son. On the other hand, in â€Å"Shooting Dad†, Sarah Vowell describes the political differences her and he father have. In the house she states that one was a republican and the other was a democratic (171). Every time they would try to start a normal conversation they would end up arguing, and having discussions of who beat who. In the end she matures and realizes that they both are actually very alike. Communication is not as easy as it seems but if you take the time to listen and pay attention to details in life you’ll find that your parents’ views aren’t so far off of yours. The fathers’ competitive side was his way of showing his communicative relationship with his son. Manning used to be able to enjoy a relaxed game of arm wrestling with his father before but as time passed everything became more real and competitive. He states, â€Å"I always had to lose ‘ Want to try it again? ‘ he would ask, grinning†¦. and with squinting eyes he would laugh at me, a high laugh, through his perfect white teeth† (163). The relationship between the father and son was a physical rough relationship. The attitude of the father impedes the communication to surpass the bond of strength that they have now. The father was seen as the protector of the family. He was the tough guy, who wouldn’t show emotions. The son realized that his father has been the person he was for them. He guided them and helped them in the toughest situations in life. The age difference impeded the positive communication between them. This all started when he was a teen. The mental state of a son differs from the mental state of a father. The awareness, attitude, and strength all change as he matures over the years. As he grew he started working out more and became stronger while the dad was aging. The moment he realized he had matured and now viewed life different was when his dad challenged him to what was his last arm wrestling challenge between them. He felt sorry but the power that he was gaining was too exciting to let go of. When he was small the dad was the one with the power, he was the man of the house but now that he won he has now taken the responsibility to take that next challenge and soon be the adult, the head of household the one to take care of the family. He learned a lesson that changed the communication between him and his father. In my life as I’ve grown I’ve noticed a difference between the communication of my father and I. Before we would talk about dolls and makeup and now we communicate by being rough. We have competitions about the smallest things like what’s that color to who will win the wrestling match or soccer game. At first to me all that was boring and bland, but as he started to get older he distanced himself from me. What stopped us from being able to communicate was the fact that we both had different views in life. I was focused on school and focused on achieving my goal to graduate and his focus was on his work and sports. We would spend limited time together that we had so much to talk about yet we would stay quiet for hours. He slowly became more involved in my school and studies and I would get pointers from him on how to play the sport correctly. Now during weekends we go to baseball games, basketball games, or to the library. Our bond has grown to be a strong relationship. The love between families is always there, it’s just that people choose to show their affection in many different ways. Manning and Vowell explain how they struggled to communicate with their father’s but overall they ended up figuring out that they are similar in many way to their father’s. The form that Manning was able to communicate or interact with his father was through a physical tough relation and the Vowell was through nature as she took photos and as he killed it. Learning to communicate can be the key to life; it’s just the matter of finding happiness between the people.