The Lover

“When a boy hits the Lover stage, his attention begins to turn away from Mom, and he becomes more attached to Dad. Dad’s now the man of the hour, and boys put a lot of effort into being just like Daddy. When my sons moved into the Lover stage, I (David) recall them hovering beside me for long periods of time, watching me shave or tie a tie. They wanted to sit with me and watch me assemble something or replace the locks on the front door.
Michael Gurian refers to this connection to Dad as “a foreshadowing to a gender identity surge” to come.5 It is crucial at this stage for fathers to spend time with their sons, and a father’s investment in his son at the Lover stage will pay big dividends down the road. Because a Lover naturally craves a relationship with his father, this is a great opportunity for fathers and sons to build pathways for connecting with each other. It doesn’t have to be extravagant."

Excerpt From: Stephen James. “Wild Things.”