When your child's teacher wants to talk to you after school, she usually does not have good news. But sometimes, as a good friend of mine from my local at-home dads group, LinOma Dads, e-mailed me recently, she has something to tell you that can make you quite proud:

“(My son's) teacher stopped me this morning to share a story," my friend wrote. "She always asks the kids a quirky question when she dismisses them for lunch, class changes or the end of the day (such as) ‘Would you rather never be able to cut your fingernails or your eyebrows?' Yesterday's question was: ‘What is one thing you know you'll be good at when you are an adult?'"

My friend's son answered, "I'm going to be a great father!"

My friend continued in his e-mail to say that his son's teacher was amazed that this quick and confident answer came from a 7-year-old boy.

"I was humbled," he wrote, "and immediately thought of all the wonderful role models he has seen over the past years with our involvement in (the LinOma) Dads group. It is truly a blessing to think that he sees fatherhood as something worthy of aspiring greatness towards, just as a boy might aspire to be a cowboy, an astronaut, a doctor, a firefighter, or any number of occupations. He sees fatherhood first and foremost among those identities, and has confidence in his abilities because he has seen what great fathers look like, act like, and feel like.”

Wow.

We hear a lot about deadbeat dads or dads cheating on their wives (heard about Tiger Woods lately?) or dads who are not engaged with their kids. But imagine if dads (and not just at-home dads, by the way) who are NOT like these can get together with other like-minded dads and give their sons multiple role-models who are loving, caring and responsible. These sons just might have a good chance to grow up knowing they will be great fathers, too.

And I think the world would become a much better place.

Al Watts is the vice president of Daddyshome, Inc. – The National At-Home Dad Network and an at-home dad of four children living in west Omaha.