John Lennon, the legendary musician and member of The Beatles, had a strong protective instinct when it came to his newborn son Sean.
Unlike his distant approach with his first child Julian, Lennon fully immersed himself in Sean’s upbringing.
It was Yoko Ono, Lennon’s wife, who entrusted him with primary responsibility for their son, and he wholeheartedly accepted the role.
Lennon’s main concern was Sean’s well-being, to the extent that he did not want anyone touching his son during the initial months of his life.
Shortly after Sean’s birth in 1975, Lennon excitedly called his lawyer, Leon Wildes, to share the news.
According to Ray Coleman’s book “Lennon: The Definitive Biography,” Wildes recalled Lennon saying, “It’s John.
I’m a father.”
Lennon was ecstatic, bouncing around the room as he spoke.
In the months following Sean’s birth, Lennon restricted visitors to their residence, the Dakota.
He feared that outsiders might spread germs and jeopardize Sean’s health.
Only Lennon and Ono were permitted to touch their precious son.
This protective measure demonstrated just how significant Sean was to Lennon, not only as his child but as a miraculous gift bestowed upon him and Ono.
Ono had her own expectations regarding the division of responsibilities after giving birth to Sean.
She believed that she had carried him for nine months and brought him into the world, so it was now Lennon’s turn to take care of their son.
In David Sheff’s book “All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview With John Lennon and Yoko Ono,” Lennon affirmed his agreement with Ono’s perspective.
He devoted himself to raising Sean, even stepping back from his music career and embracing the role of a “househusband.”
Lennon took pride in attending to every aspect of Sean’s life, from meals to sleeping habits, and even teaching him to swim.
Although Lennon expressed immense pride in Sean, he publicly acknowledged that his first son, Julian, was not planned.
In an interview with Playboy, he admitted that Julian was “born out of a bottle of whiskey on a Saturday night, and there was no intent to have children.”
As an adult, Julian Lennon criticized his father for abandoning their family and spoke about the emotional distance between them.
In a 1998 interview with The Telegraph, Julian described their relationship as distant and filled with uneasy tension, only knowing his father as much as he knew the interviewer.
Despite the contrasting dynamics between Lennon and his two sons, Julian and Sean consider each other as brothers.
Sean has credited Julian as his inspiration for pursuing music, while Julian has expressed a desire to never say anything that could hurt Sean, despite his grievances with Lennon and Ono.
The bond between the half-brothers remains strong, transcending the complicated relationship they share with their famous father.
