The yearly observance of Father’s Day has become a curious phenomena of late. Verbiage including phrases like “toxic masculinity” and the dreaded “male privilege” are bandied about, calculated to make all of us squirm. The always-reliable satire of The Babylon Bee makes this point with its June 15th story: Father’s Day Updated To ‘Toxic Masculinity Awareness Day.’ While I appreciate their ironic take, I prefer the sentiment expressed on the chalkboard below.
image from: https://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/
A brain tumor took my daddy out of this world in 1994. He wasn’t perfect, but how I loved him! From a very early age, I learned from him what qualities to value most when choosing my future husband. I posted about my dad’s struggle and death several years back. Since his passing, not a day has gone by that I don’t think about him and the impact he had on me and so many others.
Looking through some shelved books recently, my Beloved found my dad’s old Bible. He brought the volume to me and said, “You’ll want to see this.” He was so right! My Beloved placed in my hands a tattered black leather Bible, with spine reinforced by yellowed (and deteriorating) masking tape. It wasn’t my dad’s most-used Bible, but one in which he’d written a brief synopsis of his life thirty years before his death. The three-page summation makes that old Bible an extra-special blessing to me.
On this Father’s Day, I give you a glimpse into the soul of my dad, a good and loving man. I’m confident one day I will join him where he now sits, rejoicing and pain-free … at the feet of Jesus. A Father’s Day blessing for sure.