Father’s Day is fast approaching, while young and old sit patiently and prepare for the only day that honors the fathers in this country.
Some fathers find the day patronizing to their positions as fathers. Some are excited to celebrate their first Father’s Day. On this holiday, fathers are celebrated for all of their hard work taking care of their children.
Some fathers feel that mothers are more appreciated than fathers.
“My children live with me and I take care of them by myself,” said Larry Lawson, 23, the father of two children with one on the way.
Courtesy photo
Larry Lawson shares some fun time with his daughter.
“I feel underappreciated as a father,” he said, noting that some fathers feel as though mothers take all the glory in raising their children. “Although there are some dads who do not take care of their responsibilities, it does not mean that we are the same.”
Since Lawson has two young children he finds it difficult to get any sleep, so he knows what he wants to get for Father’s Day.
“The best gift I could receive on Father’s Day is sleep!”
Patrick Hall, 38, a father of four from Monroe, Louisiana, feels even more underappreciated than Lawson.
“I can honestly say Father’s Day is a load of crap!” said Hall, who feels that fathers should be celebrated in some form every day.
“Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that I do more for my kids than my wife, but why does she get all the credit?” Hall feels that everyone goes above and beyond for his wife on Mother’s Day but not for him for Father’s Day.
He says it’s the same routine for himself and his wife. “We both wake up at 4:30, get the kids up at 5 o’clock in the morning, get them dressed, groomed, fed, and out the door in time for them to get to school every day.”
Darrel “DJ” St. Julian says that the greatest accomplishment in life is creating his son.
As for gifts on Father’s Day, St. Julian says he has already gotten his. “The best thing my son has given me is the smile on his face.”
St. Julian, 25, said he is focused on being the best father possible. “I take care of my son every day. I’m the face he sees every day.”
St. Julian said some fathers shouldn’t be celebrated on Father’s Day because they are not there when their children need them. But he is determined to “break the cycle and not become the statistic” because the father’s role of teaching his child “how to be a man” should not fall on the mother.
Even though his son is only 1, St. Julian is looking forward to spending the entire day with him on Father’s Day. “I’m going to take my son to breakfast, and I’m going to take him to the park to celebrate him.”
When asked what a father is, the three dads used different words, but they all noted the need to be a constant presence in their children’s lives.
“A father is someone who gives his child everything it needs and who never leaves,” Hall said.
That sentiment was echoed by Lawson. “A real father is someone who is there no matter what,” regardless of the relationship between the mother and father.
St. Julian said, “A father is someone who watches his son take his first steps. A father is someone who wipes the tears from their eyes after they’ve been hurt.”
He summed up his role: “I am not a baby daddy. I am a father.”
Patrick Hall