Just what is a real man?

On the way to work one morning on the train, I saw a young woman who could not get her baby to stop crying. She must have been in her late teens or early '20s. This young woman became so frustrated with her child that she kicked over its stroller. People were outraged and the authorities were called immediately. People called that young woman everything except a child of God.

And while it was her fault that she kicked the baby stroller over, I could not help but think, where was the child's father? Would this have happened if he were around?

I think all too often men don't understand their roles in society or the affect that they can have on a situation. By that same token I also think that men are some of the most misunderstood creatures on this planet.
Sometimes I think that women view men using a phrase I have coined "Tyler Perry Logic." 

Let me explain. In most of Perry's movies men are portrayed one of two ways (note I said most, not all). They're either antagonists that drag a woman down for no other reason than the fact that they can. Or, these men are portayed as someone who comes in and solves every single problem, knows just the right words to say, and has the patience and understanding of 10 Jobs.

Both portayals are wrong. As a man I can tell you that real men are people who make mistakes. We struggle with insecurities and we strive to improve the lives of our families. We can be selfish, pig headed and a bit boastful - true - but we can also be the type of people that will hold a family together and uplift them. We don't often get it right on the first time - or the second or third (for me it's like the 10th time). But what makes us real men, is the fact that we get in there and we try each and everyday. No matter what we go through, we continue to move on and push forward for our family. That's what a real man does.

I wonder what would have happened if a man was with that young woman on the train. I wonder if he would have been able to pick up the baby when she was tired, to give her a break, would she have reacted so harshly and so quickly. Just something to ponder.