Bonding Over Media

For a long time, I didn't feel like I truly bonded with my dad. As a child, he encouraged my love for science, my budding creativity, and my endless curiosity. He helped me with my math homework and school projects, and fixed my toys when they broke. When I got older, I felt more distant from him, no longer interested in becoming a paleontologist, geologist, or whatever kind of sciencey -ist you can think of. We loved each other as father and child, but there was a rift, not out of hatred or any negative emotions, we just couldn't relate to each other very well.

Now, I became a fan of professional wrestling in early 2015, and I kept it a secret due to me being afraid of being made fun of for loving a "fake sport" (that's a can of worms I may open later). It was actually at Pizza Junction that I asked my dad if I could go to a match that was coming up in a couple months. He was surprised that I was a fan, but he was a longtime on-and-off watcher of pro wrestling since he was a kid! Since then, he's told me stories of what pro wrestling was before WWE became humongous, and I've been telling him of the modern era and we sometimes watch Monday Night Raw or SmackDown together. We've even gone to a couple shows, both of which were super fun.

This really goes to show that media can help form bonds, as I've gotten closer to my dad through our mutual love of pro wrestling. Dad, I know you read the blogs, and I just wanted to say that I love you. You don't hear that enough. :)

Selfie from my first WWE show in November 2015!