Two Suggestions for Fathers Day

 Father's Day June 19, 2022:  respecting, enabling.

Why am I excited about Father's Day?   A question you're asking yourself?

Father's Day celebration (scheduled for 2022) requires some thought.  Why get excited about it?

For one thing, most of us had really great fathers.  They loved (me the kid/us the kids), they gave us a load of their genes, they provided examples of tender care, they exercised some good-willed punishment when necessary (in some cases at least--maybe not your case.  I wouldn't know about that.)  Maybe they financed our education?  Mine certainly helped a lot with that.  They played with us:  how to throw a ball, hit a ball, or hike in the wilderness?

Dads are great.

In my case, my Dad provided an example for me about concern for the poor.  He regularly volunteered at the Rescue Mission, located on Pacific Avenue Tacoma, Washington.  He took me with him.  I observed what it meant to reach out to help the poor.

Dads are great.  That's why we remember them with an annual national holiday.

Now I'm a dad.  I appreciate the greetings I receive from my kids and grandkids.  Family ties are important channels for helping the kid forming a value system.

In 2022, it happens that the Poor Peoples' March on Washington, D.C., the capitol of the United States, occurs on June 18, one day before Father's Day.  I can't help but think, thanks to my own dad's example, that there's a link between the goings-on on June 18 (the March) and June 19 (Father's Day.)  There's much that fathers can do in regard to the gap between rich and poor in the United States.

At its very simplest level, fathers can drive the family past the stretches on urban streets in which the poorest are housed in tents and duffel bags.  Fathers can take their kids to churches that seek to help the impoverished (my church, for example, allows poor people to pitch tents on the church lawn, use a church restroom.)  Many religious organizations, church denominations and congregations are supportive the Poor Peoples Campaign of 2022.  Visit https://www.poorpeoplesampaign.org/June18.)  

Summing up:  father's day 2022 can be celebrated in creative ways.  Just as our dads were creative, so can we use the day and the entire year for helping less fortunate human beings and preserving the environment.  

Fathers, let's go for it.