As I am walking on to the stage, I look out to the crowd, searching for familiar faces. My eyes meet my mother’s brown radiant eyes, then moving down to her pearly smile. My gaze tilts to the hollow seat right next to my mother where my father should have been. I shake my Principles hand with disappointment and walk out of the stage with a smile that’s not big enough to fool my mother. His presents; his love is all I search for in mine and my father’s relationship. His absents in my most important events makes me feel as if I don’t exist. He would work long hours to pay of the bills of the house. I know he is trying to support us by giving us a home but that is not the only obligation for a father/parent. I always question myself, is he not proud of me? Does he just hate me? Or does he just not have the courage to tell me how much he really loves me? It was my 8th grade graduation and my father was not present. Seeing everyone hug their father or high-fiving each other with happiness, it made me feel unimportant. I didn’t have a smile like everyone had, plastered in their faces full of light, I didn’t have that. I had the unconvincing smile of a clown hiding back the tears. My mother was present but it is also a father’s duty to do the same. You can’t have a mother doing both parts, even though it is possible, it’s wrong. If a child is born with only a father then that child won’t be able to gain the love and the willing to care for others. When a child is born without a father then the child won’t be able to gain the of strength and honor but then again that is only my opinion.
I know parents aren’t perfect, and they do have their flaws, but I believe that a parent, no matter if you are a mother or father, they should still be able to do the fallowing: be there for the child, give the child love and support, be proud of the child's identity and traits. A parent will never neglect that child mostly in the hard times. A child was born, now it is the responsibility of the parent to take charge and care for that baby, love that baby, be there for that baby, take responsibility!

“He walked to me, curled his arms around my neck, and gave my brow a single kiss. I am moftakhir, Amir, he said. Proud.” (Page 131) This quote was taken from a book that we are reading in Our English class, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It takes place in Afghanistan. It’s about a boy who struggles to keep a stable relationship with his father. This quote is presented when Amir (the main Character of the book) graduates High school. His father was present in this important event and for the first time in years he tells Amir that he is proud of him. His father was really proud of Amir; Baba would always be embarrassed of him. Telling a son/daughter that you are proud of him/her is like a gift of no other; it’s one of a kind, feeling that someone does actually appreciate what you do.

“I am proud of you” are the only words that I want to hear from my father. I try hard getting good grades and when I reach them; my father tells me that I can do better. When I tell him good news, I get my hopes up by expecting him to say the magic words that I have always wanted to hear, but then he searches for the negative in my news and starts to beat me up with his loud words. My father is never present, he even forgets my birthday. He is hardly there for me. He is always thinking that working is the only responsibility to do as being a father. No, it is also important for a parent to be there for their child. The event of having a child is the most unexplainable feeling; it’s the most important aspect of being a parent, and for a parent to forget a son’s/daughter’s birthday is quite on forgetful. They brought life to a young baby; I believe it is an event to always remember.
Parents are obligated to love you no matter who you are no matter what you do. People make mistakes and nobody is perfect. “Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them in with your favorite colors.”(Page 21) Baba (Amir’s father) was embarrassed of his son, Amir, for being different. Baba’s friend, Rahim, says the quote to Baba because it’s true, you can’t change how someone is, they are who they are. My father, for the first time he called me weak. I asked him why he called me weak and he told me this because he thought I was too skinny. “Weak” was one of the worst words that my father has ever spoke to me. My father should love me the way I am. Like come on, really?
In the news, I watch how many kids are neglected and treated like animals, abused. The worst thing that a parent could do to his child is, abuse them or neglect them. A father should care for that child, in the end its how a parent treats a child what will affect the child in the future. Amir always felt neglected and Baba would never spend time with him. Baba was disappointed in how Amir acted, never standing up for himself. Baba just has to learn that not everyone is brave right away. It takes time for some to be confident. Amir was only a child I think that Baba should of understand that much. When a child grows in an unstable environment it will eventually affect them in the future. Like President Obama says “We should pass the value of empathy to our children as parents.” My father was beat as a child and I can understand were his anger comes from, but it doesn’t mean that he should let it happen again and do the same with his children. He did break the cycle of abuse but he didn’t break the cycle of anger. He still bashes us on the head with words daily.
My Father isn’t perfect but he does help us financially and sometimes gives us the love we need. I live in a family of six, four of us are kids, what can you do with the love and the support? Divide it equally. Don’t leave a child feel neglected. Like I said, once a child is born it is the parents responsibility to take charge and care for that baby, love that baby, and to be there for that baby. Deep down I know my father loves me but I can’t believe it until I see it. In the relationship that I have with my father I hope that we become much closer. I just want him to be present, to support and understand me, to never put me down but to lift me up and to give me strength for my future obstacles. A parent shouldn’t ever be an obstacle to overcome. Wishing that my father would finally show me that he loves me for who I am isn’t the right action for me to take. I want him to show me without God telling him what to do. He should know himself what is the right thing to do. I love him so all I would wish is that he would have the courage to do what is so simple, to say that he loves me and that he is proud of his little girl.