Sunday is Father's Day.
I am not a father, so feel free to dismiss my opinion as something I don't know.
However, I had a father. I miss him dearly every day.
I have several friends who are fathers. I am a man. There are other people's children I have cared for in my life. I think those facts should get my foot in the door to comment on the way fathers and males are looked at these days.
In an ideal world, as God intended, every child would have a mother and a father.
This is not in any way an attack on single-parent homes or any other non-traditional parent/child dynamic. As long as you love the child you're bringing up, and treat them right, I'm good.
But, regardless of these, there is still a role for fathers and their role has too often been discounted by society as of late.
I recently attended a Marion County quarterly connect meeting about child care. This is not an attack on organizer Carla Eysink, but it was concerning that all but maybe four of us out of around 30 attendants were male.
Fathers have just as significant a role in a child's life as any mother. Or, at least they should be. Child care is as much their responsibility as a mother's.
That did not seem to be reflected at this meeting, led by a group of taxpayer-funded "experts" who seemed to have forgotten that fact as well. Most discussion was geared toward what a struggle it can be for moms.
There may not have been any intentional dismissal of dads. They likely do work with more moms than dads, but it seems like if we should be funding anything as taxpayers - regarding parenting - it should be promoting more nuclear families.
Or, at the very least, encouraging more males who make babies to truly be fathers.
If there is to be a discussion about child care, its accessibility, costs, etc., let's bring all parents in on it. While it is traditional for the man to go to work to provide for the family, while the mom stays at home, that is not - and should not - always be the case.
Children are supposed to be the responsibility of two parents. If there's going to be an Iowa Women's Foundation geared at helping females deal with these issues, there should be one for men as well.
Fathers can struggle with these costs. Fathers may be looking for answers regarding the safety of their children while they fulfill other duties.
Reinforcing the idea that dads should be equally as loving, equally as responsible for the financial and emotional support of a child should be something we do as a society. After all, the basic building block of society is the family and we should keep as many families with a mom and dad in a functional, healthy relationship, together as possible.
It's not just about dads loving their children, but a reminder that children should be seen by men as just as much a blessing as women see them. Of course there is a responsibility for a man who creates a baby, he should be accountable, but we should focus on educating these young men - who don't realize it - that a child is much more than a financial obligation, or something you can leave with your baby mama and forget about.
America needs strong fathers, just as much as it needs strong mothers.
As a childless man, it saddens me that I haven't had the chance to do all those "dad" things so many others have taken for granted, or just thrown away.
Feel grateful for your children and be proud of being a dad. If you're fortunate enough to still have him, be thankful for every single moment you get to spend with him.
Take care of yourself and thank you for reading.
