I know; it’s been a while since I’ve posted on the blog, and for that I do apologize. But as Father’s Day was approaching, I thought it nice to break the dry spell with a heartfelt commentary on fatherhood. And so, the day began.
In the morning, I posted a thought on Facebook for a dear friend of mine, where I equated fatherhood to a beautiful tree:
“For the majesty of a tree resides in the nourishing fruit it bears that goes on to feed a grateful world.”
A short while later, I was texting with another dear friend who had shared a beautiful sentiment for Father’s Day. During the exchange, I mused about what a father brings to the table when raising children:
“…and it’s on that platform where you have to bring to bear the sum total of your knowledge, experiences, pain, love, joy, aspirations, and responsibilities as a guardian, mentor, teacher, and the arbiter in charge of establishing (your children’s) sense of morals, ethics, and humanity.”
So as the morning progressed, I found myself in a great frame of mind for writing a few thoughts to share with you kind folks who like to stop by from time to time to see what’s on my mind.
It was then when I turned on the television to catch the news while having breakfast and had my frame of mind summarily broken.
I had almost forgotten that this year’s Father’s Day celebration landed on a somewhat crowded weekend: The Army was celebrating the 250th anniversary of its founding in 1775, and the current President of the United States was celebrating his 79th birthday. But in 2025, these last two milestones apparently got together and gave birth to a third event: A military parade in Washington D.C. to celebrate the Army’s Semiquincentennial. The fact that it fell on the President’s birthday was, well, kismet.
Considering the current political climate in this country, neither the Army nor the president’s respective birthdays and their subsequent shared parade were going to get through the weekend without some folks coming out to express their thoughts, opinions, and (dis)pleasure (but hey; one parade for two events – that was thrifty.)
Yet here’s what happened: As I watched the troops on TV marching by the presidential dais accompanied by members of various Army bands from across the country, along with the obligatory assortment of military vehicles and hardware, my mind kept drifting to fathers. Specifically, those fathers currently attached to the military and/or the various branches of law enforcement who had been deployed or tasked with a mandate to – and I’m using this old law enforcement motto as a generic phrase – serve and protect. It’s been a time-honored tradition for these varied organizations to ensure that the interests, safety, and security of the people are safeguarded, whether that be through the enforcement of city, state, or national laws and ordinances, or even when safeguarding our people living overseas, or in support of our friends and allies around the world (and I believe we still have a few of those.)
But beyond the badges, patches, epaulets, medals, campaign ribbons, or flags, there are the fathers. Men who serve by getting up every day and facing uncertainty. Whether to go on patrol in some tense grey zone around the world, or to work an 8- to 10-hour shift patrolling a local neighborhood, these men carry in the back of their minds the reality that their life could end on that day. Every day. I would venture to say that 99% of them never brood over such thoughts, no more than the average person driving a car ponders about the next vehicle that will come around the corner and T-bone them on some highway. Risks are a reality to most every situation. The difference here is that the men in uniform choose to live with those risks; they choose to put themselves in harm’s way for the sake of protecting others. Now I’m sure that some will argue that last statement. They will counter that some men in uniform (and to be clear, some uniforms are in actuality suits) will take advantage of their position and power for the sake of subjugating, harassing, or simply making other people’s lives miserable. For the love of me, I can’t imagine where some people might get that idea.
Politics, people, and personalities aside, I wanted to take this moment to help level set expectations regarding the fathers out there who serve. Those men who have seen their missions altered, rewritten, or even stretched beyond their credulity in the name of peace, law, and order. I’ve seen the faces of men serving under such strenuous circumstances; the balance between their beliefs and obligations often demand that they go against one or the other for the sake of their career, pride, or even their family. And more often than not, these men sometimes find themselves in a thankless job. For despite all of the publicity, flag-waving, or even the traditions they represent that were written in different times by different people in a different environment, it’s a hard job. Their connections to one another are deep, and the camaraderie that flourishes among their ranks is nothing less than family. Yet the fact still remains that many of them are fathers. Men who chose a career that began with far simpler directives than those facing them today. Men with wives and children who wish for them the same opportunities and security that any person would wish for their own family.
So, to those of you who celebrated Father’s Day with such men, I fervently hope that it was a day filled with love, togetherness, camaraderie, and happiness. They deserve every measure of support, love, and understanding. And to the men who serve on those difficult and often complicated legal and ideological front lines, I truly wish that you’ll always have your family members first and foremost in your hearts. May they serve as a source of peace and inspiration, and may their love always act as a safeguard against the stress or worries of the job. And above all, may your loved ones always be a reminder that the people whom you have chosen to serve and protect are really no different than you. They too yearn for peace and the ability to love, cherish, and protect the platform upon which to build a bright future for their children. A future that, in my humble opinion, has all the attributes for benefiting everyone.
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