Father’s Day is right around the corner: June 17.
Dust off your best puns and dad jokes, because it’s Dad’s moment to bask in the glory.
My dad has always been very excited about Father’s Day. He reminds us weeks in advance that his big day is on its way.
Once when I was a kid (when reading calendars wasn’t in our repertoire yet), my sister and I celebrated Father’s Day a week too early. My dad went to work covered in stickers and homemade ribbons, proud of his day.
Unfortunately, everyone else was just really confused.
We were glad to show the love though, even if we couldn’t read dates.
And now we know—it’s June 17th—but nothing else has changed. Dad’s still reminding us, and we’re still excited to show off how much we care.
“I had an origami business once...It folded.”
While it’s wonderful to acknowledge our loved ones’ importance every day, I’m glad there are significant days in which to let that care shine. We get caught up in life, but an approaching holiday helps bring the important stuff back into balance.
Just as with our mothers, the relationship with Dad (and Step-Dad, Dads plural, Grandpa-as-Dad, etc.) has evolved.
As a little kid, I emulated everything my dad did. If he thought it was cool, I thought it was cool. I loved reading with him, going to museums, listening to Fleetwood Mac and Blues Traveler. I wanted to play the guitar and be in a band.
That changed as I got older. For a long time, the connection was complex. And just as Dad became the biggest dork ever, I was also learning how to have a step-dad.
They were both extremely important to me, filling different and vital dad roles, but I wasn’t really great at navigating it all.
Learning to balance that, to understand the different spectrums of significant love, took time, but we got there in the end.
When did I develop an obsession with trivia?
However much we might deny it, eventually we all turn into our parents.
We become weirdly proficient at puns, we get particular about the way people squeeze out toothpaste, we circle the parking lot four times before picking a spot, we quote Star Trek, and we can’t stop extolling the virtues of 80s Hair Bands.
At some point, we all stop and go, “Oh my god, did I really just say that?”
It’ll be okay.
Someone out there will enjoy those long family stories about Great-Grandma’s nursing stint in WWII. And if they don’t, then they’re just not as cool as us and our dads.
I’ll admit you’re awesome if you don’t tell anyone.
To be honest, I think the best parts of us come from the people who raised us. They kept us alive, so that definitely counts as a rad bonus.
They also taught us how to read, how to be decent humans and say “thank-you” when the neighbor gave us a cookie; they taught us how to shoot free throws, and how to use a hammer without smashing our fingers.
Maybe they even taught us how run a small business and do basic surgery.
For all they did, our dads gave us a good start, and they’ll always be our solid, dependable dry land in the sea of scary adult life.
Super amazing, Dad! xx
Best wishes, Loretta
From around the net, we’re soaking up & enjoying Bathing Culture.
Bathing Culture started as the search for the perfect reset bathing experience, and is today a soap company in San Francisco that boasts a super great, natural, ethical body soap fit for the most adventurous nature lover. This earth-friendly soap is a perfect gift for Father’s Day—and bonus! We already know a couple dads who love it.
Call your dad (don’t text; it’ll trigger longing for a simpler time...), and talk about something fun you did as a kid. It’ll make you both feel special. xx
Comment
What a wonderful article! Any Dad would love it and I sure do!