For Dad’s Only

Dad’s, what are you doing for Father’s Day? After 23 Father’s Day’s, we’ve decided to try something new. The typical “King for a Day” celebration of a special dinner and activity (often alone or with buddies) has worn thin for us. As the honored parent, it’s felt like I’ve been a passive participant in a celebration where Hallmark says kids should come up with creative ways to tell dad “I know I don’t tell you often enough how much I love you.”  One day will do little to change that.

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I’m not the kind of guy that likes to have a party thrown for him even though for 23 years we’ve attempted to force-fit that model each third Sunday in June. Rather than my family making awkward overtures to honor me by doing nice things for me for one day, we’re planning a day of fun that honors and celebrates our relationships. Over the years, I’ve grown in my love of being a dad. It’s a rich experience of learning to help others grow. I want to continually turn to the next page in both my continued growth as a dad and the writing of our Father/child relationship stories. There are far greater things to be experienced and written about than have taken place in the past, as good as they were.

The choice to make this change came about when my wife asked me what I wanted for dinner on Father’s Day. It hit me then that I wanted more than just a special dinner to celebrate. I then asked myself these questions:

What about being a dad to my kids do I want to celebrate? What do I enjoy about those relationships?

What about being my kids’ dad might they want to celebrate? (they’ll probably not be able to answer the question but you’ll get a good picture by listening to the stories they tell about you).

How can we do that?

We’ll see how it goes. There may be several Father’s Day celebrations this year!