From the time your son is an infant, his relationship with you—Mom or Dad—sets the template for how he will relate to every other person in his world. If you are trustworthy, he will trust others. If you are more critical of him than affectionate, he will guard himself from being too close to anyone. You become his emotional filter. All of his future relationships will be fitted into the framework of his relationship with you.

Fathers, you are larger than life to your sons. Mothers, you decide the comfort of his small world. If you are not available, someone must fill in for you or else his world will crumble. As a boy grows throughout elementary school, his feelings, experiences, and thoughts continue to evolve around his relationships with his parents. If these relationships are strong, his days at school will be more productive and enjoyable. If you had an argument before he left home, he may fail his math test or forget to hand in his homework. Your relationship influences every part of his day.

When your son hits the adolescent years he scrutinizes his relationship with you. If you have a bad relationship, adolescence will be a…