Happy Birthday, Dad.
It does not matter where you are in your fatherhood, you never outgrow hearing those words. Your child or children give back to you on this special day observing everything you give them. How about starting something new this year for them to enjoy receiving from you on your birthday.
No matter if you are a father for the first time, or father to an adult with children of their own, the love and memories expressed on your birthday are special. The words never get old, especially “DAD”.
You are part of creating a miracle that continues to live, breath, make mistakes, learn, and love. You continue to give, support, listen, look, and counsel by your actions being louder than your words.
What you do means more than what you say.
Your children are looking and observing what you do even though they may not always say so. It may be expressed directly or other times it may be an unexpected comment taking you by surprise. Their feelings are as heartfelt and meaningful to you as your expressed thoughts and feelings are to them. Why not express and tell them?
Allow me to provide an acronym to consider explaining this point. L-O-V-E can be expressed and demonstrated with the four heartfelt letters turning into meaningful words: Look – Observe – Value – Embrace. Doesn’t that get to you?
These are activities, as fathers, we perform continuously throughout the day putting evidence from these activities into the memory banks for reflection or into the discard files not to be thought of again.
Embrace the LOVE you have not just by actions but put actions into words reflecting your observations. Reflect and think back to the actions you put into the memory keep file and discard the other actions entered into the delete file about each individual child. Look, now you have a smile on your face. Turn that smile into another action and write and remember the unique characteristics, traits, and “SUPERHEROS” you VALUE in each one of them.
Put these terms down in a creative fashion they will remember.
Each child is individual and special. They have their own method of comprehending this information from you. The children will feel special knowing, on your birthday, you continue to LOVE them and treasure what makes them each individual.
The “terms of endearment” can be related to their athletic and/or academic abilities, their personality that comes out naturally when they enter a room everyone smiles, the skills and attributes, such as leadership or empathy with care for others.
You may reflect on how you like when they want to hold your hand when growing out of infancy. How about you see yourself in them as they parent their own children (your grandchildren). The examples are countless but you get the point.
Present them with a keepsake from you for them to treasure on your birthday. Start a tradition and do this annually. You will remember and so will they. Both you and the child/children will have smiles and you the father added one more reflection item to the many you preform out of L-O-V-E.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!
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Photo Credit: @nikhita on Unsplash
