Phil Dunphy was one of the best characters in Modern Family and the best TV dad in my books. If you don’t agree, drop your address. Let’s fight. He is especially great because he teaches you how to parent in a way Nigerian dads could never, all the shade to them. Here are 7 parenting tips Nigerian dads could learn from him.
1. Always show up for your kids.
Phil was miles away during Alex’s high school graduation and still showed up via video call. As a Nigerian kid, if your dad attended all your school events, good for you. But how many Nigerian dads even know their kids’ age or school? Not to talk of being virtually present for graduation. It’s hard to make time while living in the poverty capital of the world, but a simple phone call can make all the difference.
2. Make time to bond with your kids
Phil and Luke had one of the best father/son relationships on screen. Especially because they bonded over the simplest things. Nigerian dads bond with you by sending you money or asking you to sit down with him while he watches the news. They need to do better.
3. Be reasonably overprotective
Nigerian dads take things too far. You can’t have friends over, visit people, date, experiment with clothes, hairstyles etc. And this is the reason why many Nigerian kids lie all the time. They’ve figured out that lying is the best way to navigate having an overprotective parent. Haley was dating an older man, and while Claire was going to allow it, Phil ran after her because it just wasn’t right. She was a child. That’s the only time being overprotective counts.
4. Put your family first
Yeah, you need to make money to make their lives easier but no one is indispensable. Imagine dying and all your kids have to say at your funeral is that you spent all your time working. God abeg. Learn from Phil, who knew how to make his family his number one priority.
5. Support your kids
Nigerian dads need to learn how to be supportive. Phil was a master at this. When Hailey had to drop out, he supported her. That didn’t mean that he didn’t want her to succeed. He just understood that she needed time. He genuinely thought the best of all his kids, no matter what. Even Luke, who everyone thought was stupid and wouldn’t amount to anything.
6. Love your wife loudly
Phil set the bar high for what to expect in a romantic relationship for his kids. He treated her right, so they knew never to settle for less. See where I’m going with that? Nigerian men need to do better.
7. Show emotion
Nigerian dads think that being tough through everything is the way to go and it’s not., It teaches your kids to never properly process how they feel about anything. Did Phil cry for a lot of stupid reasons? Yes. But he showed his kids, by example, that they could be vulnerable with him. He’s a G for that.
