A Man

Well, I was cleaning out my room tonight for a move into a new place with my friends Ray and Dan. I found a folder from one my English classes at the Academy and spent a little time reading over some stuff. Most of it wasn't worth rereading but this particular one I had completely forgotten about. I guess I'll let it speak for itself. The piece is more straightforward and upfront because the class was Women's Dramatic Literature and my teacher was a feminist. She was actually very nice but definitely a feminist. :) The guys in the class mostly responded by being overly chauvinistic so it was definitely interesting to read this in front of the class...

I'm tired of being just a guy. I want to be a man. What is a guy good for anyway? He knows all the local bartenders and could show you a good time for the night. The next morning though he's worthless. He'll stumble over dirty clothes, scratching his butt on his way to the bathroom and groan as he empties his bladder into the toilet. He can tell you some good stories, sure, but none of them are ones his mother would want to listen to. When you need advice or someone to talk to, all you get is a blank stare or a muddled reponse that leaves you more confused than before you asked. A guy is a disgrace; capable of so much but settling for so little. One minute he's sweet-talking his mom on his brand new cell phone and the next minute he's at a strip club gawking at someone else's mom. A guy is a contradiction; full of power yet living in weakness. Living for himself.
I want to be a man. Powerful, yet under control. Meek. I want hands full of purpose. Hands that don't rest lazily on my crotch but hands that are quick to reach out to others. I want to pursue, too. I want to pursue a woman; one who's not afraid to be beautiful...on the inside. One who may wear the same old dress every day but who has a heart that's come alive. I want a woman that makes me want to be more of a man. A man will promise his love to a woman in front his whole family and hers before he'll ever make empty promises under sweaty layers of bedsheets. A man will keep his promise until the day he dies.
Be a man, not to be loved but to know and love the One who created you and had to send his Son into the world to be a man for you.