I ate a donut today!

Some of you reading this have already passed judgement on me, and that’s OK.
You don’t know me at all, so I’ll let it slide…THIS TIME!

As a weight loss surgery patient I’m supposed to avoid foods like this, right?
I spent $60,000 on a surgery to lose weight and now I’m tossing it all away for some confectionery goodness covered in icing.
After all donuts contain little to no nutritional value, contain massive amounts of sugar, and are simply just not good for you.
But they taste AMAZING right?

Now, before the rest of you pass judgment on me, let me explain.

I’m 40 years old.
I have no children and never will.
My wife is 43, recovering from ovarian cancer, and because of the required surgeries we will never have children.
My wife and I are OK with that.

My brother and sister-in-law on the other hand have 3 beautiful children.
2 nieces and a nephew, and I love being an uncle!
Watching them grow, and helping them learn how the world is… frankly it’s a magical thing.

DONUTS DON… GET TO THE DONUTS!
I’m headed there. Hang with me.

My brother travels a lot for work and is often not home for several weeks at at time.
Currently he’s been out of the state for the past 5 weeks, and it’s looking like he might not be back for another 2 or 3 at a minimum.

So as I’m sitting at home night before last I get a phone call from this little voice that says “Hello Uncle Don!”
“We are having Daddy Donut Day at school on Friday, would you come and take us?”

Let me tell you people, your heart melts when a 5 and 7 year old ask you to be there for them when their own Dad simply can’t.
The only thing I can use to describe it is like being a semi-pro athlete and finally getting that call that your being pulled up to the Big-League!
I have no idea what it feels like, but to me, it felt amazing!

I of course proudly accepted and picked them up this morning and we headed off to Daddy Donut Day.

As we walked to the donut line my intention was to select a donut for me that her and her younger sister could share.
After all I don’t need to eat a donut to be there for them at Daddy Donut Day, and what kid wouldn’t want another half of a donut right?

As we sat there in the gym, me waiting for them to finish their own donuts, the 7 year old looks at me and she says….

“Uncle Don, your not eating your donut.”
“I was saving it for you precious. I was going to let you and your sister split it.”

People…. if you could of seen the look on her face.
To her Daddy Donut Day was about ACTUALLY eating and sharing a donut with them.

How do you look a 7 year old in the face and explain eating disorders, carb counts, and problems with sugar and dumping syndrome when shes on the brink of tears?
The answer is you don’t!

So, I snapped that donut into 4 pieces and slowly enjoyed a crap filled, carb full, glazed donut for breakfast…. and it was AMAZING!
I ate a donut today!

But it wasn’t about the donut at all people.

It was about spending time with 2 very precious girls and having an experience I would never get to have on my own.
For a 5 and a 7 year old, having someone there to share breakfast with them made the world of difference to them.
As I sat there looking at the other dads, some morbidly obese, some in wheel chairs, some in their running gear, and some in their business suits ready to shove off to work, I imagined
what Daddy Donut Day would of looked like to them if I wasn’t there.

It’s enough to make a fella tear up.
Children are so precious, and time is a fleeting thing.
It’s the one resource we can never replenish.
We can always make more money, but we can never get back time lost.

So today, I ate a donut, and it was magical!
Judge me if you will, but I’d eat a donut anytime I was allowed to have an experience like I had today.
I can work that donut off people, but I can never ever get back the experience I would of otherwise lost.

Life is about experiences people.
It’s about the moments, and who you spend them with.
It’s not about grams of protein, number of carbs, or what you weight.

It’s about living life, being happy, and helping out your fellow man.

I would encourage you all to look out for opportunities like this.
If you have to, eat a donut yourself, you wont regret it!

I ate a donut today, and I don’t regret it one bit.

Have a comment? leave it below.
I would love to hear your thoughts.