By Susan K. Boyd MS, MFT
June is the month that we celebrate Father’s Day. We set aside a twenty-four hour period to buy (or make) him gifts, let him watch sports all day and cook him his favorite meals.
For that one day he is King and does not have to fix anything around the house, hear what is wrong with him or solve anyone’s problems.
The celebration doesn’t last, which makes me wonder if we might try harder to tell him, all year, what we appreciate about him being our dad.
So here it is, to all you dads, what we forget, sometimes, to say, but really do know about you. The following is a short list of what we notice, and more importantly, what we love about you. Thanks for the following:
Going to work everyday, even when you do not feel like it, to take care of us.
Putting our needs before your wants.
Sharing values that you think are worth living by.
Showing up for our plays, concerts, matches, competitions and events.
Being the parent that teaches us to drive (so mom won’t have a coronary in the passenger seat).
Pushing us to be our best.
Letting us learn from our mistakes.
Keeping your sense of humor (even if we don’t understand your sense of humor).
Never giving up on us and always looking for the best in us.
Spending time to make memories with us.
If you are a dad this June, Happy Father’s Day! We will try to appreciate you a little more often and remember some of the things on our list that makes you so special to us. Maybe, sometime, we will let you have a whole day doing whatever you want to do, even when it isn’t Father’s Day!
Susan K. Boyd is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in private practice in SLO. She can be reached for counseling by calling (805) 782-9800 or by email: . Also see www. susankboydmft.com.
