When Tristan got upset at a soccer match, Clint Edwards knew he needed to say something.
'As a father of a boy, there was a part of me that wanted to tell him to toughen up,' he wrote. 'Every father since the history of ever has been faced with this decision. But the thing is, that's what I was always told when I was ten... It didn't make me feel stronger. It made me feel weaker. It made me quit.'
So instead, the doting dad from the US struck a deal - ice-cream in return for full disclosure on what had happened during the match.
After a tearful Tristan revealed he didn't feel good enough and wanted to quit soccer, Clint had this advice:
'It's not about being the best right there and then,' he told his boy. 'It's about growth. It's about showing up and trying, really trying. Sometimes I feel like I'm not getting any better at this whole dad thing. But I keep showing up and trying.'
After the post was shared hundreds of times, other parents and sports coaches began to comment.
'I find the man up approach has a time and place that's not it,' one wrote. 'As far as I am concerned you nailed it.'
You can read Tristan's response on No Idea What I'm Doing: A Daddy Blog
