Tribute to Fathers

He started with a tall frame.
An angel nearby said, "What kind of a Father is that?
If you're going to make children so close to the ground,
Why have you put the Father up so high?
He won't be able to shoot marbles without kneeling,
Play pretend drinking tea, and kiss dolly goodnight,
tuck a child in bed without bending, or even kiss a child without stooping."
God smiled and said, "Yes, but if I make him child size,
who would children have to look up to?"
And when God made a Father's hands, they were large.
The angel said, "Large hands can't manage diaper pins,
small buttons, rubber bands on ponytails,
or even remove splinters caused from baseball bats." Again God smiled and said,
"I know, but they're large enough to hold
everything a small boy empties from his pockets,
all the paper dolls, sing songs, jump rope, and teach her to turn cartwheels.
Yet small enough to cup a child's face in them."
Then God molded long slim legs and broad shoulders,
"Do you realize you just made a Father without a lap?"
God said, "A Mother needs a lap.
A Father needs strong shoulders to
pull a wagon, to balance a bicycle,
or to hold a sleepy head on the way home from the circus."
When God was in the middle of creating the biggest body any one had ever seen,
the angel said, "That's not fair.
Do you honestly think that form is going to get
out of bed early in the morning when the baby cries,
or walk through a birthday party without crushing one or two of the guests?"
God again smiled and said, "It will work. You will see.
It will support a small child who wants to ride to Banbury Cross
or scare mice away from a summer cabin,
or walk in shoes that will be a challenge to fill."
God worked throughout the night, giving the Father few words,
but a firm authoritative voice; eyes that see everything,
but remain calm and tolerant. Finally, almost as an after thought,
He added tears. Then he turned to the angel and said,
"Now are you satisfied he can love as much as a Mother can?"
The angel said nothing more.Happy Father’s Day!

TAKING OUT THE TRASH

What are Dads for?
According to at least one respondent in a recent not-so-scientific survey, they exist for one reason and one reason only: "To take out thetrash." Of course, other respondents -- children in our neighborhood ranging in age from 3 to 11 years old -- had different ideas when the question was posed as part of a Father's Day project for our church congregation. Michael says we have Dads "so they can play with us." Kelsey is much more pragmatic. She says we have Dads "to go to work and get money for us." Ashley thinks Dads are there "so you can ask them questions," and Colby says we have them "to help us when we have problems." But I sort of like Kyle's answer. He says that "Dads are for being nice."

I'm glad that's true for Kyle. I wish it were true for all children -- especially mine.

The children also had different ideas about what their Dads do all day. McKenzie's Dad "works and golfs." Nathan's Dad "plays with toys at work." Levi's Dad "gets paged." And Auraleigh's Dad "goes to work where he eats all day and looks around for his wife" (I've got to talk to Raleigh -- Auraleigh's Dad -- about where to apply for that job.)

Asked "What is your Dad's favorite thing to do?" most of the children responded with play: basketball, four-wheeling, golf, water skiing, hunting and fishing. Watching sports on TV was also big, as was fixing cars. Jordan's Dad "likes to play around with reptiles" (remind me to stay away from the Price residence.) But Leah seemed the happiest to report that her Dad "really likes to go outside with me and play games with me." LuckyLeah! Lucky Leah's Dad! Some of the most interesting responses came when the children were asked "How will your Dad change once he turns 60?" (I guess 60 is the generic age for Really, Really, Way, Way Old, although I must tell you that the closer I get to 60, the less Really Way Old it seems.) "His hair will be a little gray," said McKenna. "He might have a beard," said Nathan. "He will get kinda saggy on his face like all grandpas do," said Justin. "I think he'll get more serious and might slow down," said Rochelle. "He won't be as hyper," said Michael. "He will be like... confused," saidJonathan. Uh, that was from Jonathan Walker. My son. And I'm already confused.

The question "What does your Dad say all the time?" was pretty revealing about family dynamics. Lots of Dads were quoted for those quickie commands we all use from time to time: "Put your shoes on!" "Roll up the Nintendo controls!" "Go to your room!" On the other hand, Frankie remembers his Dad saying, "A job worth doing is worth doing well." Justin's Dad says, "You're great, Just!" Adam's Dad says, "You know what I like about you? Everything!" And Chandler's Dad says, "I'm really proud of you." Wouldn't it be great if all our kids remembered "I'm proud of you" more than "Let me just say one more thing" -- the best-remembered fatherly phrase of the Walker children.

Reading the survey, unscientific though it may have been, I learned a few things. I learned that there are different kinds of Dads who impact their children's lives in different ways. I learned that it's the simple, common, ordinary things that seem to have the most impact (there wasn't a single reference to fancy houses, expensive cars or costly trips.) And I learned that God gave us Dads to "love us" (Kyle), "take care of us" (Allyson), "protect us" (Madison) and "to walk us across the roads"(Tanner.)

With or without the trash.

-- Joe Walker

KID'S EYE VIEW OF FATHERHOOD

As the mother of four and a journalist who collects funny kid stories, I am convinced that it's not a father's words but the words of his children that define what it is to be a father.

Fatherhood is a two-way street. (When I first typed that I made a typographical error and it came out two-say street. How true!)

Fatherhood is not just the father talking to and guiding his children. It's his children turning to him with questions, comments, observations, tears, fears and laughter. It's not about going to Disney World. It's about sharing your world.

Fatherhood is about strength (in the child's eyes), learning, doing, honesty, being comfortable and setting an example. It's about doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way... in your child's eyes. Young children have complete confidence in their father:

~ When asked who was going to help Superman fight the bad guys, a 2-year-old from Minnesota said, "Daddy!"
~ When a Florida mother told her son she didn't have the money to buy a toy he wanted, the little boy, whose father made drawings as a surveyor, said, "Well, why doesn't dad just draw more money?"
~ Seeing his older siblings fly their kites, a 2-year-old carefully spread his kite on the ground, sat on it and said, "OK, Daddy, I ready go for ride!" But coupled with that confidence in father's abilities are frank observations about father's weaknesses. For example: ~ A 6-year-old said, "When Daddy takes a short cut, it always turns into a long cut."
~ When a Chicago father was having trouble fixing his daughter's hair, she said, "That's okay. He's just a daddy. He'll be a mom someday."
~ When an Arkansas father was stopped for speeding in his shiny new Mustang his 5-year-old son leaned over and exclaimed, "But officer my daddy ALWAYS drives fast in the Mustang!"

Many very young children assume that as they become older their parents are becoming younger. I've received a number of stories similar to the one about Kyle, 4, who was told that when he grows up he would be 6 feet, 2 inches like his father. Kyle replied, "And Daddy will be smalllike me!" Perhaps that view represents wishful thinking, such as when Jayden, 3, told his father, "When I get older I'm gonna be a daddy. That way when you yell at me, I can yell back!"

Then there are the wonderful stories about fathers and children working and having fun together - whether it's making breakfast, going to the barber, fishing, golfing, tackling homework, taking a walk, gardening or doing any of the 100 other things that define fatherhood.

I like the story about the little boy in Florida who was allowed to slice hard-boiled eggs for his father when they were making breakfast. When the boy cut into the first egg he said with amazement, "I didn't know there was cheese inside eggs!" Or the 5-year-old who was gardening with his father and spilled Miracle Gro on his finger. "Is my hand going to get bigger?" he asked.

An Indianapolis father wrote to me about when he took his 2-year-old for a walk and she saw a dead, dried up worm. The little girl squatted down and said, "That worm needs some exercise!" Tom from Okinawa, Japan e-mailed me about when took his 4-year-old to see the airplanes at the Air Force base where he is stationed. When an airplane took off, Tom said, "Honey, that's the sound of freedom." A few days later Tom and Catie were outside when a plane flew overhead. Catie said, "Daddy, I like airplanes, but freedom sure is loud!" How do you define fatherhood? These last two stories say it all:
~ Mitch, 4, sternly warned his dad, "You better watch everything you say, 'cause someday I'm gonna talk just like you!" ~ Or, as another pre-schooler put it, "I'm just a chip off the old pot!"

-- by Grace Witwer Housholder

Thank you, Cheri for sending me these.

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