My Five Minutes of Father’s Day
Although Father’s Day “officially” lasts twenty-four hours, it seems I only get about five minutes of it. The five minutes squeezed in between eating breakfast and getting dressed for church, when my wife and children sit me down on the couch, present me with cards and my homemade “We Love You Daddy” t-shirt (see the Perfect Gift for Father’s Day blog for more on the t-shirt). I am showered with happy Father’s Day wishes, before Mary and I begin the mad scramble to feed our three kids, get their teeth brushed, get them stuffed into church clothes, find the missing shoes (why is it always the shoes that go missing when you are running late?) and get out the door only five minutes late.
The church experience is hardly one to foster a wonderful Father’s Day. With an eight, six, and two-year-old, my wife and I spend more time asking the kids to be quiet, to sit right, to pay attention, too actually pay attention ourselves. Once mass is over, the mad rush begins again, as we hustle the kids into the mini-van, swing by the house to pick up blueberry muffins (we always bring the blueberry muffins) and head over to my parent’s house for the Father’s Day Brunch. Although my mother, brother, and sisters all wish me a happy Father’s Day, the celebration really isn’t about Fathers or Father’s Day, it is about family. Just one more “excuse” for all of us to get together.
After spending several hours surrounded by siblings, nieces and nephews, grandparents and great-grandparents, Mary and I pack the kids up and head across the state line to the Father’s Day dinner at Mary’s parents. Everyone wishes me a happy Father’s Day, but again, it isn’t really about Fathers or Father’s Day, it is about family. We talk, laugh, eat, play outside, chase kids (our own and those of our siblings), and offer a sprinkling of happy Father’s Days as necessary. Again, we spend several hours surrounded by parents, grandparents, siblings, nieces and nephews before we head home and get the kids packed off to bed. Shortly before we both pass out from the exhaustion of the day, Mary usually gives me her “serious” Father’s Day card and gives me a final happy Father’s Day wish.
All in all, I get about five minutes of Father’s Day, five minutes when I am the center of attention. The rest of the day is devoted to family and I wouldn’t have it any other way.