Celebrating Father’s Day

“One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.”

-George Herbert

Exactly a month later than the Mother’s Day, falls the celebration of Father’s Day. It is intriguing that mothers and fathers are remembered through a celebration. Yet, these emerging customs merit both attention and encouragement, notwithstanding a certain misgiving about their appropriateness.

Both are American contribution to the way close human relations are seen, appreciated and valued. In India, as in several other cultures, such demonstration is often considered facetious. They became celebratory and institutional in other parts of the world because America and her people decided to make them so.

While the first official Mother’s Day celebration took place at a Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia, in 1908, and was made into a national holiday by U.S. president Woodrow Wilson in 1914, it was only almost 60 years later that President Richard Nixon signed a law in 1972 to make the third Sunday of June every year a permanent national holiday celebrating Father’s Day. 

Does that suggest in some way the relative superiority of mothers over fathers? Perhaps or perhaps not.

And fatherhood offers challenges of a different nature. It could be blissfully onerous and could be delightfully frustrating. And yet incredibly illuminating. As Charles Wadsworth observed,” Bythe time a man realises that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he’s wrong.”

Evolution of Father’s Day

It is interesting that the idea of both these days originated in Churches. The roots of the modern Father’s Day trace back to the early 20th century. The first known Father’s Day service was held on July 5, 1908, in Fairmont, West Virginia, at the Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South, in response to a tragic mining accident. However, this event did not spark an annual tradition.

The official establishment of Father’s Day is credited to Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington. Inspired by a Mother’s Day sermon, Dodd proposed a day to honour fathers in 1909. The first celebration in Spokane occurred on June 19, 1910. Despite this early initiative, the concept took time to gain national acceptance. It wasn’t until 1924 that President Calvin Coolidge showed support for a national Father’s Day. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Finally, in 1972, President Nixon made it a permanent national holiday.

Significance

The spirit of Father’s Day is emblematic of the invaluable presence of fathers in their children’s lives. It is a tribute to the fathers of the world for the roles they play in nurturing, protecting, guiding, and shaping the lives of their children. The families spend quality time together, creating cherished memories and fostering stronger bonds.

Importantly, Father’s Day also acknowledges the various paternal figures in a child’s life, including grandfathers, uncles, and other male mentors who contribute significantly to their upbringing. It recognises that fatherhood is not merely a biological relationship but one of care, and active involvement, of commitment and sacrifice.

It must also serve as a poignant reminder that love, support, and time spent together are far more precious than material gifts, that the often silent and unappreciated sacrifices deserve a grateful recognition. Father’s Day reinforces the belief that active involvement by fathers leads to better emotional, social, and academic outcomes for children.

Celebrating Father’s Day alongside Mother’s Day brings out the shared joy of parenting, strengthening the healthy notion that both fathers and mothers play crucial roles in the upbringing and growth of children.

Moving Beyond Commercialism

Notwithstanding the increasing trend of explicit display of expression of our love, regard, appreciation and gratitude of fathers in the society, a deeper and more thoughtful approach to articulate this sentiment may be in order. Perhaps a more nuanced and abiding way to truly honour and respect fathers and father figures beyond the celebration of Father’s Day deserves our consideration and attention.  A cultural and educational shift is called for to emphasise the importance of these relationships consistently throughout the year. The father-child bonds need strengthening and nurturing everyday through greater interaction and communication and not limited to a celebration of this inseparable bond.

One must grow beyond the commercialism of Father’s Day, fostering a genuine and lasting respect and acknowledgment of the vital contributions fathers make.

Father’s Day, then, is more than a day for giving flowers, cards and gifts. It is a celebration of the crucial role that fathers and father figures play in the lives of their children and society. While it encourages us to appreciate, honour, and learn from these relationships, it should relentlessly lead to fostering stronger family bonds and celebrating the uniquely positive and inspiring bonds that bind the fathers and their children.

“He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.”, wrote F. Scott Fitzgerald. Acknowledging and respecting the role of fathers should be a matter of heart, a sincere and lasting emotion rather than a customary curated expression of gratitude.