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| First line should end, "you don't love them" |
I know in my own family, my kids will set me up with snacks and books and comfort while they spend the day cleaning. I know; I've got it REALLY good, so you know I'm not complaining when I explain that my Mother's Day gift this year was the installation of the ceiling fan that I received for Mother's Day 4 years ago. LOL!
Father's Day is a totally different animal. Is it because it happens a month later that it is suddenly an outdoor holiday? The dads I'm around celebrate Father's Day with a cookout, of all things, starring Dear Daddy at the fiery furnace during the heat of the day, sweat pouring down his face. If he's lucky, he gets a tie or a new scrub brush for the grill as a gift. Gee . . . um . . . thanks?
~It's like giving Mom a new vacuum cleaner or ironing board for Christmas - notice to hubbies: not a good plan!~
All kidding aside, fathers have an amazing role to play. They don't always wear as many "hats" as moms do, but the ones they take on have weighty and often permanent effects.
Providers
I've heard it said that men are built to provide for the family. In ancient days, it was the man that left home to hunt for the food for his table. Nowadays, that has changed somewhat as women show equal ability in the job world, but that isn't where I'm going with this. In the last several years, I've known a few men who have been out of work for long periods of time. Their wives and their savings carried them through it, but they struggled emotionally as they were unable to do what was so deeply instilled in them to do. I've known women who were out of work as well, but unless they were the only breadwinner, the effect was dramatically different.
Dads
Most of the cartoons I found about dads had sons in them. Chip-off-the-ole-block type of things, but I love the dad in the cartoon shown. Can't you just feel the love?
For boys, their dads are ideals. Whether they like them or not, a dad tends to be the son's expectation of himself. Young men are influenced by the the actions and words of their dads, building up their own vision of honor. A dad who shows integrity will likely build integrity in his son. One who brags about how he gets away with things or openly lies will instill those values as well.
Daddies
With girls, this is a totally different story, hence a different name. A man just hasn't experienced life unless he's had his entire spine translated into a 2 cm coil around his baby girl's finger! I swear, I hardly even recognized my dear hubby after our first little girl was born, and he'd done the baby thing with the boy!
To explain the difference, I'm going to tattle on my friends! Trey and Denise have 4 kids, too. Only theirs are 3 boys with a younger sister, instead of the oldest boy and 3 girls that we have. Anyway, all of the kids were in trouble for the same reason and Denise gave Trey the unhappy task of dealing with the situation. Each boy came out of the room, one-by-one, crying. Then came the daughter smiling from ear to ear. Denise narrowed her eyes and asked her what happened with Daddy. "He said I was just too cute to be bad," came her daughter's reply. Needless to say, that didn't fly with momma! She knew better.
But daughters often have that effect on their daddies and how the men deal with it will make a huge difference in their daughters lives. A dad in Trey's situation has to stick to his guns, sometimes (oh, and Trey does, BTW). When a dad maintains discipline, he raises his daughter's confidence because she has no question of the expectations he has of her. When a dad does let things go, as Trey did, he shows compassion that builds up his baby's self-esteem. A young lady with a father who openly adores her will have little chance of falling for someone who hurts her. There's a balance, there. Too far one way and you get rebellion; too far the other way and you get a brat.
While the boys tend to focus on words and actions, girls focus on time. They like the words too, but, as anyone with a daughter knows, girls like to talk - I'm just sayin'! So a dad who spends time with his young ladies, especially listening type of attention (quality time) instills value within her that would be difficult for the outside world to eliminate.
Honor Your Dad!
However you might like to celebrate it, Father's Day is an opportunity to honor the ones who provide for their families,adore their brides, instill confidence in their daughters and honor in their sons.
Have you called your dad today? (I can't do that anymore, but I sent up a prayer, asking Jesus to tell him, "Hi" for me.) If you haven't, stop what you're doing right now . . .
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