Today is Father’s Day. Coming a month after the Mother’s Day celebration, Father’s Day seems almost like an afterthought.
It was a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909 that inspired American woman Sonora Smart Dodd to campaign for a day in honour of fathers, particularly her father who raised her and her siblings after their mother had passed away.
Yet, Father’s Day somehow seems to play second fiddle to Mother’s Day when it comes to the effusive outpouring of tributes from the children.
Let’s face it … Mother’s Day pulls at the heartstrings. See how the children come up with “I love you Mommy” presents and cards sprinkled generously with hearts, ribbons, bouquets of flowers and pretty butterflies here and there.
When it comes to Father’s Day, the tributes switch to “sterner” stuff like neckties, coffee mugs and gadgets.
For the past years, our Sunday School (SS) has been closely associated with the Mother’s Day celebrations in FBC (E). Each year, the SS ministry has taken charge of the Mother’s Day presentation – be it songs or poems – and distribute gifts to the mothers and grandmothers present during the church services.
This year, the SS was tasked with the Father’s Day celebration for a change. Since late last year, some of our students have been rehearsing for a Father’s Day presentation but the Movement Control Order and its ongoing extension has put a brake on the whole plan.
With the SS in lockdown mode and more time now for parents-children to bond at home, the ministry decided to do something that will inject some “oomph” into the Father’s Day celebration today – something that will also tug at the same heartstrings as Mother’s Day.
After bashing around for ideas, the SS decided that it’s time for the dads to come out onto the front stage and be more visible.
The children were given a mission – to round up their dads and submit photos of themselves and their dads and even granddads based on the tag line… FUN TIME WITH DAD!
Looking at some of the photos submitted, we almost go teary-eyed at the dads and children bonding together. We did say it’s about pulling the heartstrings, didn’t we?
We hope our Father’s Day photo session will help the dads realise how important they are in the lives of their children. And when a dad who loves the Lord corrects, comforts, instructs and provides for the needs of his children, he models for them the perfect Father in Heaven.
We are sure these photo moments will go a long way in preserving the memories and bonding experiences for the dads and their children in the years to come.
So dads and granddads – Today is your Day! Let’s make this Father’s Day a real celebration of fatherhood, which like motherhood, is one of life’s great journeys.
Happy Father’s Day!