"You go to the hospital your wife's in labor and you're doing the thing, and then it's very disorienting and scary and you beat yourself up and you go through a whole period of 'woe is me' and then you realize that this a gift, this child is the light, and if you can nourish that light and just let it shine, you have an opportunity to get closer to what I think is God"
About this Quote
The pivot to "gift" and "light" isn't a Hallmark turn so much as a reorientation of attention. He doesn't claim the moment makes him holy; he claims it exposes how hungry he is for meaning. The subtext is spiritual but also psychological: stop narrating yourself as the protagonist and the panic loosens. "Nourish that light and just let it shine" reads like an actor's direction to himself - resist controlling the scene, protect the conditions, don't overperform.
Context matters here: McGinley, best known for high-strung intensity, is translating that energy into awe. He sells God without preaching by making faith sound like proximity, not certainty: an "opportunity to get closer". It's not doctrine; it's a hard-won humility, smuggled through the most culturally acceptable portal for male vulnerability - the birth of a child.
Quote Details
| Topic | New Dad |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
McGinley, John C. (2026, January 16). You go to the hospital your wife's in labor and you're doing the thing, and then it's very disorienting and scary and you beat yourself up and you go through a whole period of 'woe is me' and then you realize that this a gift, this child is the light, and if you can nourish that light and just let it shine, you have an opportunity to get closer to what I think is God. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-go-to-the-hospital-your-wifes-in-labor-and-92626/
Chicago Style
McGinley, John C. "You go to the hospital your wife's in labor and you're doing the thing, and then it's very disorienting and scary and you beat yourself up and you go through a whole period of 'woe is me' and then you realize that this a gift, this child is the light, and if you can nourish that light and just let it shine, you have an opportunity to get closer to what I think is God." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-go-to-the-hospital-your-wifes-in-labor-and-92626/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"You go to the hospital your wife's in labor and you're doing the thing, and then it's very disorienting and scary and you beat yourself up and you go through a whole period of 'woe is me' and then you realize that this a gift, this child is the light, and if you can nourish that light and just let it shine, you have an opportunity to get closer to what I think is God." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/you-go-to-the-hospital-your-wifes-in-labor-and-92626/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
