Daddy's day

My husband and I aren't very big on celebrating holidays. Most holidays come and go at our house like any other day. We barely acknowledge 98% of them. Today is one of those days that, for the most part, gets little recognition at our house.

'Father's Day', like all other holidays in America have become more about commercialization and less about the purpose for the holiday. It seems like no matter what it is we are supposed to be celebrating, every store in America will happily sell us something to better that day. I have seen numerous adds over the last month, with the number escalating almost daily, for 'Father's Day', each one hoping to sell me a 'must have' item for my husband or 'Father'.

I have nothing against most holidays. They are a fun way to pass the day and can be the prompt, or kick in the pants, that some people need to take notice of someone else. But even though I don't necessarily object to them, we also don't feel the need to take part in most of them either.

Today is a day that is supposed to celebrate dad's. And it does to an extent, although I have to wonder who actually does more celebrating, dad's or the stores and companies selling all manner of things to people trying to show dad a bit of love today.

This past week I was at a major chain store and wanted to buy a card for my husband. I wanted something that basically told him I love him and how much I appreciate what he does for our family. I found a card that was almost perfect and, after checking the price, I stuck it in my shopping cart. I pushed that card all around the store while I shopped for groceries and other needed items. The card was unloaded onto the conveyor belt along with everything else. And during all that time I debated on whether or not to buy the card. I wanted it for my husband but that 6.00 price tag was more than a little ridiculous. When did greeting cards get so expensive? And why in the world are people crazy enough to spend so much on them?

In the end I put the card back. I just could not justify spending that much money on something that served such a small purpose. As I was making that final decision though, I stood there, card in hand, reading over the words written on thick paper and I thought to myself that I could better express my feelings in my own words and that it would probably mean more to my husband than a secular card. I felt a twinge of remorse as I set the card aside, seeing that pretty blue envelope. I even thought to myself that I wouldn't have such a pretty envelope to put whatever I make my husband in.

I don't have a pretty envelope and I don't have thick fancy paper but I have a heart full of love and gratitude.

I remember my growing up years, years in which I spent my days without a dad. I think I was about 12 when that fact started to bother me. I imagined what it might be like to have a dad. I never found out. Dad's day passed for me as nothing but a vague idea of something other people did.

Years later I used to imagine what it might be like to have a husband. I thought of what our family might be like. Daddy's day would come and go and still it was a vague notion for me. As an adult I better understood the purpose for it but still had never really had a reason to celebrate it, although I had learned at some point that 'Father's Day' doesn't only have to celebrate biological dads. I discovered that my grandpa deserved recognition too. I would get him a card, visit him, or call him on the phone but still the idea of celebrating dad's was foreign to me.

Then I married my husband. Holiday's have never gotten much notice in our home. Christmas is about the one exception and my husband does not like that holiday either. And so we pass our holidays with a short 'happy ______ day' and not much else.

As the years have passed though, I have seen countless reasons to celebrate my husband. He is a wonderful Dad. He sometimes makes my mother's heart leap in my chest as he tosses babies in the air or lets them play with things I don't think they should have but he is a wonderful dad. I smile when I watch him interact with our children. He has the uncanny ability to make babies love him and older kids too. He is playmate and daddy. He is friend and partner in crime.

One of the cards I looked at for my husband spoke of how good the Lord did when He put our family together. I loved how it worded that. The Lord did a marvelous job when he put our family together. We have had ups and downs. Trials and tribulations. There are things I wish we hadn't had to go through and things I would relive in a heartbeat.

I once had someone tell me I made a mistake in marrying my husband. This same person talked of how some marriages are God made and others are not. I don't believe that for a second. I firmly believe all marriages come about by the hand of God. I also certainly did not make a mistake in marrying my husband. He is a wonderful blessing.

He is my best friend. My confident. My...everything. He holds my heart in his hands. I am grateful that he is careful with my heart. He shares my faith. He studies Scripture with me. He guides me, leads me, provides for me. Protects me.

The Lord did good when He put our family together.

He gave me a husband that is as good as they come. There isn't another man out there more perfect for me. The Lord knew that when He brought us together.

My husband and I may not share all the same interests...for some reason he doesn't want to play dolls with me...but we share a good deal of interests. I can't find an interest in golf no matter how many times my husband shares the sport with me. None of that matters though because we both find joy in each other and in so many other things.

Sometimes we disagree on things. We don't always see things the same way. That's okay too. We never argue over the things we don't see eye to eye on and somehow it all works out.

The Lord did good when He put our family together.

The day I met my husband was the day the Lord gave me a gift like no other. It started out so mundane as to be normal.  Nothing more than a smile shared between strangers. And now here we are, years later.

I watch my husband with our children and I know what a wonderful daddy and man he is. I watch him work endlessly, often exhausted, to provide for our family and I know what a wonderful man, husband, and daddy he is. He smiles at me when I walk up and I know he loves me. He cradles our child and I see the love of a wonderful daddy. He hands out hugs, advice, and money to our children and I see his care and love of them.

Today has become a day that is celebrated more by the businesses in America than it is by families. It's not about appreciating daddy anymore. Now it's about how much money you can spend to show dad you thought of him. Somehow America has begun to see love in the things that are bought and given as gifts. Covetousness fills our society to overflowing. Gone are the days when celebrating dad meant telling him you love him and spending the day with him. Now it's about better gifts, fancier cards, more expensive meals out.

It is no longer a holiday of love but a holiday of greed.

I can't say that I spent no money to celebrate this Daddy's day. I did. I didn't buy expensive cards or useless gifts. We won't be one of the families crowding into busy eating places to share a stressful meal among so many others but I did invest a bit of money into things my husband needed. I did it not because it's a holiday of consumerism but because my husband holds my heart.

I did it because all too often in the bustle of juggling a family I fail to say thank you or to make my husband know how much I appreciate him. He works hard to provide all the things we need and many of the things we want. He fills our lives and home with little things that bring joy to our days. He does laundry when I fail to get to it. He sweeps floors when they need it. He even cooks for me and washes baby diapers when there is a need to do so. He is the absolute best husband I could ever ask for and I want him to feel loved today and every day.


I thank the Lord for the husband He gave me, for the wonderful daddy He gave our children. I thank Him for my best friend, for my protector, my...husband.

And today I want to put all of that in words because if I shouted it from the rooftops daily I could never say it enough.

Thank you, husband, for all that you do for us. Thank you for being a wonderful daddy. Thank you for being a kind, caring man. Thank you for being my best friend. My Christian brother. My confidant. My soul mate. Thank you for loving me on good days and bad. Thank you...

for being you.