I was married to Kathryn in December of 2001, and we had the conversation together on having children and so, our daughter’s existence was planned and prayed for. After her birth, a year and two weeks later, our first son was born, and our second son arrived a year and nine months afterward.
There was this one day when I had a vision of a little girl running down the driveway screaming “Daddy, Daddy” as I pulled up by the gate.
Kateri was finally here in 2003 and when I entered the delivery room and finally saw her, she was this little mass of black curly hair with her cute tiny body behind it. Eventually, I went outside and almost threw my phone into the air in ecstatic jubilation.
The most amazing experience was when I actually came home one day after work and saw her running down the driveway shouting “Daddy!” I melted, as tears filled my eyes!
For my first son’s birth in 2004, I remembered telling Kathy that he was purple and Chinese with straight hair shooting off of his head. I had always considered the name Michael as there were quite a few priests by that name who were very influential in my life.
One day as I sat quietly, I heard with greatest of clarity, “His name is John,” just as Zechariah was told. So, we named him John-Michael.
The last of the lot was born at home in 2005. We both liked the name Luke and so we decided to keep the John and add a little French flair and so, we now have Jean-Luc.
My job at FedEx, at the time, afforded me the opportunity to spend time with them on a morning as I prepared them all for and took them to primary school.
I used to enjoy coming home at night as the kids and I had our little welcome routine. They all did a dance as I came through the door, then in turn they ran and jumped into my arms and I would throw them into the air, catch them, then repeat the process.
Elements of surprise were huge for me with them. I would usually surprise them at the very last minute asking them to quickly pack their bags and load it into the car and within half of an hour we were on our way to the port to head across to Tobago, where we would spend our vacations.
Sadly, in 2018, I separated from Kathy and the kids, and it rocked their world, including mine. I had the task of telling the kids of my decision.
Upon breaking the devastating news and the flood of emotions which ensued, I assured them that I am still Daddy, my responsibility to them remained the same and that I will continue to love them tremendously although living arrangements would be different.
From then to now, there have been challenges but by God’s grace we’ve been able to overcome the hurdles.
I am truly grateful to God for these three gems that He has blessed us with, and the journey of fatherhood has been an enriching experience and vocation for me. These guys are my world!
They have all, in turn, made me proud as their father for the successes they’ve accomplished academically and otherwise, despite the difficulties they have faced. God has blessed and preserved them, and by His grace, He will see them through to His call on their lives. I am indeed a proud Father!
Collin Romero, a self-employed sound engineer of Crome Audio, is an active member of the Santa Rosa/Malabar Cluster, Arima. He served a six-year term as a Eucharistic Minister at the Santa Rosa RC Church and has a great devotion to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and Eucharistic Adoration. He is involved in the Separated, Divorced and Widowed Ministry of the Archdiocesan Family Life Commission.