Father’s Day is approaching. Gird your loins!
Yes, that’s a The Devil Wears Prada reference. Happy Father’s Day, moms! Just kidding, I enjoy Prada. It’s no Working Girl, but *shrug emoji*.
Anyway, in case you don’t remember, Father’s Day is the same thing as Mother’s Day except it’s for dads and it doesn’t matter. Don’t scoff, moms; you know it’s true! At least according to the Wikipedia entry I’m about to edit.
I’m not being bitter, I swear. I’m just speaking my truth. I’m a dad and I don’t care about Father’s Day – and I bet most of my brethren would agree.
This isn’t to say that my fellow dads and I won’t be disappointed if that second Sunday in June (or is it the third? I HONESTLY DON’T KNOW!) goes by without a little acknowledgment, but it’s not a major concern. Father’s Day is a second-tier holiday and I’m okay with that.
Earlier this spring, I spent at least a month agonizing over how to best celebrate the mother of my children on her special day (not to be confused with her birthday, ‘our’ anniversary, Valentine’s Day, etc.). And I’m willing to bet that she, a renowned gift-giver and experience maker, hasn’t spent so much as thirty minutes thinking about Father’s Day. She ain’t sweating it.
My kindergartner isn’t spending two hours crafting some macaroni necklace or ceramic ashtray (it was a thing in the 80s) to gift me. His teachers probably won’t even make him fill out one of those funny questionnaires in which he guesses that I’m 104 years old, that my job is “drinking beer and doing what Mommy says,” and that my favorite hobby is “yelling.” My kids aren’t sweating it.
That’s fine! Like most dads, I’m pretty simple. A bottle of booze, some new grilling tongs, maybe an afternoon nap on the couch and I’m all set.
Besides, despite the changing norms and increased domestic role that dads have these days, we’re still lagging behind. Plus, we have a much lower bar to clear. When we contribute at all, we’re treated like royalty, whereas moms go above and beyond every day and still get shamed for not doing more. Mother’s Day should be a bigger deal!
I’m happy to be recognized on Father’s Day but I’m not sweating it.
Just let me watch my The Devil Wears Prada/Working Girl double-feature in peace.
