Respect Father’s Day

Head’s up! If the Father’s Day card you purchased or planned to purchase says “World’s Best Farter,” now is the time to buy something nicer or change your plans. This is not meant to be disrespectful to mothers, but most people would never think of giving their mom such foolishness for Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day seems to be regarded as a day to honor and respect one’s mother, whereas Father’s Day has become a joke making fun of deadbeat dads. I agree 100% that Mother’s Day is for honoring and respecting mothers, but Father’s Day should be for honoring and respecting fathers. Mothers are showered with flowers and gifts, but the Father’s Day gift aisle in many stores has looked like a Spencer’s for the last decade. However, I was pleasantly surprised to see a tasteful selection of gifts this year.

On Mother’s Day, you see sweet posts about moms on social media. On Father’s Day, you see posts about deadbeat dads, child support, and moms asking for Father’s Day wishes because they fulfill both roles. That may be true (about filling both roles), but you don’t see single dads acting that way. Maybe it’s just one of the many ways men and women are different. I know there are some deadbeat dads out there, but there are some not-so-stellar moms out there, too. Over-generalization is a pet peeve of mine. Don’t group all dads into being “great farters” just because one is.

The reason I feel so strongly about this is because of my dad. He is the best person that many people and I know, not to mention the absolute best dad. The remarkable thing about that is that he is the child of a single mother. His maternal grandfather was a great example to him and spent a lot of time with him, as did an uncle and other relatives, but he did not have a day in, day out father figure.

 

Don’t get me wrong, my mom is great and we love her, but this is about Father’s Day and the lack of respect it gets. My dad is the backbone of our family. He is our source of entertainment. Even if something is not fun, he makes it fun just by spending time with him. Growing up, Jared and I knew when he would be home for lunch because Scotch’s whistle blew at 11:30. We would wait for his truck to come across the bridge, and we would be so excited! In the evenings, we would play whatever sport was in season until dark. I still don’t know how he had the energy to do that after working in a sawmill all day.

On the weekends, we did so many fun things. We spent a lot of time taking care of our property and vehicles. We had fun doing it, though, and learned in the process. We went on many local hunting and fishing trips. We would buy groceries on Friday nights, and I would make sandwiches for us to take to the river the next morning. We had so much fun, even when we got stuck on the landing, lol.

On school nights, we did homework after we practiced our sports, then watched TV and went to bed. On the weekend nights, we watched TV as well. Some vivid memories I have are watching the TGIF series that featured “Family Matters,” “Step By Step,” and the show with “Cousin Larry Appleton.” That always cracked Daddy up. I remember eating cinnamon rolls and watching movies or “Walker Texas Ranger” on Saturday nights. Sundays, of course, were for church.

The only thing I would change about my childhood is being more well-behaved. We weren’t bad kids who went to the principal’s office, but my parents deserve better than to put up with a kid acting like a brat from time to time.

Anyway, back to my dad. I’ve never seen him fly an aircraft, but other than that, he can do most things. He can work on automobiles, small engines, do electrical work, he is a certified plumber, top level Ham radio operator, and he has carpentry skills, just to name a few. He may call the HVAC man or local appliance repair men if necessary, but he is usually able to fix everything himself. That is so impressive to me, especially since he didn’t have a dad to teach him those things. He taught my brother the same skills, with the exception of the Ham radio. I mainly just held the light, and I can write about my experiences watching them, haha. I’ll also add that none of these are his actual jobs. He worked at Scotch Lumber Company for decades, and has been at Scotch Plywood Company in maintenance for right at a decade. I asked one of his long-term coworkers what impressed him the most about my dad from a professional standpoint. He had the following to say: “His ability to understand computers and the marriage with PLCs for equipment performance. He could actually write the programs.”

Another of his long-term coworkers is a good friend of mine. Sometimes, he finishes my sentences and predicts my next moves. I asked him a few times how he knew. He said “I worked with your daddy for 30 something years and you’re just like him!” That’s probably the best compliment I could ever receive! It’s far fetched, though, because I fall short in many ways.

My dad and I are very close and have a great relationship. We talk multiple times a day, particularly about our day when I leave work, and we spend a lot of time together. My husband is convinced that I think my dad invented air, rofl. We love watching old TV shows, cooking/eating, talking, I like asking him for advice, “burning up gas” in his hot rods, shooting guns, and just sitting on the porch.

I thank the Lord every day for my parents and I pray that they will live long, healthy lives. I know that not everyone is as fortunate to have such a wonderful dad, but please don’t disrespect all dads just because of a few bad apples. There are so many special men in my life. To think of them being treated differently because they are men is sad to me.

Social media is not the only place they are disrespected, either. One of the deal-sealers in my decision to stop attending corporate church is because evening church was cancelled on Mother’s Day so people could spend time with their moms, but it was not on Father’s Day. A little shade was thrown my way insinuating that I just wanted to play hookie from church that night. That was not it at all, although it contributed to my playing permanent hookie. My reason behind it was this: The Bible says and preachers preach that the man is the head and spiritual leader of the household, yet we treat him as second class by not giving his family the same opportunity to spend time with him as we did mom on Mother’s Day. I did not agree with that, nor appreciate the way it was addressed. It was disappointing to me because that is where the example should have been set. Oh well, we will have an absolute Father’s Day celebration at my house this weekend!

This week, I encourage you to put some thought into making this Father’s Day special for the dads in your life. This can be any man in your life who is a father, but especially your father. If you know a man who has lost a child, reach out to him. If you know someone facing their first Father’s Day without their dad, reach out to them. Send cards to the dads in nursing homes and to your lonely neighbor down the street. I feel like dads are forgotten heroes. Just let them know that you are thinking about them. It will mean more to them than you will ever know, and you’ll be glad you did.

Signed,

One heck of a Daddy’s Girl

And a

Chip off the Ole Block