d of fathers and addies by Travis Griffith photo provided W hen my son was born six years ago, I would have said that I knew exactly what it takes to be a daddy. Turns out all I knew was how to become a father. The difference is surreal. For years my perception of what it meant to be a father was to work hard and earn money for my family. That's a respectable commitment that is shared by millions of fathers. It's not until an amazingly simple piece of advice helped me realize my priorities were not aligned with my true intent, and that I had become `just' a father. Since I worked so much, I missed many moments of my young children's lives. Events like school parties had become secondary, if not tertiary, because I knew my efforts at work were paying for their care and happiness while I was away. My fatherhood had become passive and I took comfort in knowing other people were taking care of my kids. I was | November 2008 | Q View Northwest - Spokane Edition | www.qviewnorthwest.com