Happy Father’s Day to my Dad and brothers
Even though I already talked to my Dad this morning, I made the unfortunate mistake of calling my brothers who are in the same time zone as me as well (I’ve been up since 6am), and obviously I forgot that on a Sunday morning, there is no reason to be awake this early (well, except for me, as I was on the radio on a panel for Public Eye Online talking about the Vancouver post-Stanley Cup final riots and the role of social media). Today we celebrate Father’s Day worldwide (it coincides in Mexico and Canada, this time, as opposed to Mother’s Day). And while my Dad really doesn’t read my blog, I wanted to take this opportunity to celebrate him (and my brothers, all of whom are Dads too), as well as my friends who are fathers.
My Dad and I have a very special relationship. We’ve butted heads through the years on occasion, but we love each other profoundly, and many of my own personality traits are a direct reflection of my Dad. As Dad put it very aptly, I’m 50% him and 50% my Mom, pretty much a good split (with very opposite personalities, I might add).
My Dad taught me how to play piano, how to play tennis and basketball. He taught me the importance of taking time for self-reflection, and to celebrate the diversity within my own family. I mentioned last year about how he drove me over 800 miles for a job interview, because he knew that interview would be one of the most important interviews of my life.
My Dad and Mom may have disagreed on many things, but the one thing they always agreed on was that it was better to have ONE bad education than TWO good ones (e.g. they always decided on what was best for us by consensus, and they presented a united front all the time). And he and Mom always agreed that the priority as we grew up was to love our brothers before anybody else. They instilled in me and my brothers the sense of unity that characterizes my family.
I adore my brothers, all of them. They’re amazing individuals, wonderful professionals and amazing fathers. They have worked really hard to make their children’s lives the best they can, and they’ve been wonderful role models. I doubt I’ll have a chance to be a parent, sadly, but I try to be the best uncle to their children that I can.
On Father’s Day, many congratulations to all my friends who are fathers, to my brothers and to my own Dad. And also to the memory of my Grandpa Juan (my Mom’s Dad), who was an amazing father himself, and to whom I owe much of who I am now.
Happy Father’s Day.
