Father's Day

Mother's Day gets a lot of attention, deservedly so. But, Father's Day, not so much. Why is that? I mean, let's face it. We couldn't be mothers without those fathers!

Father's often don't want a big fuss made over them. It's not their style. Usually. I'm sure there's an exception or two out there. We all have in our heads the idea of what it means to be a "good" parent, mother or father. But, I'm STILL looking for the owner's manual that I thought surely would come with the kids I birthed. At times, I'm pretty sure the FATHER had hidden it and/or memorized it. He always seemed so SURE of what needed to be done/not done, said/not said, even/especially when I wasn't. But, I don't think that father's have any more of a clue most of the time than mothers do. They just have to act like they do. And, I think sometimes that's half the battle, right there. I mean, someone has to make a decision and run with it. Time will tell if it turned out to be a good one or not.

Mothers are allowed to cry. Even EXPECTED to, sometimes. But, dads, while allowed to cry at really touching things, definitely aren't expected to. It breaks the man rules. Gotta be tough. Gotta be DAD. I would think though, that that has to be a hard act to carry on all the time. A woman can cry, rant, meltdown and blame it on hormones, nature, Oprah, whatever. Dad's don't get that luxury.

I want to honor all the great DAD's out there on this Father's Day Eve, especially Howard, Nathan, Tyler & Kevin. Thanks for hanging in there, being patient when you really just want to punch the wall, working every day, even if you hate it, because you're the DAD. Thanks for bringing home the bacon, picking up the dog poo, emptying the trash, mowing the lawn, cleaning the pool, playing with the kids and fixing stuff. Thanks for NOT drinking, drugging, or gambling the money away.

Thanks for being DAD.