Celebrate Fathers with Love and Ask for our World to Change
I grieved deeply when my father passed, and decided to do the one thing he continually bugged me to do - go to grad school, get my PhD, and use it to create a better world.
The most important work for parents is to raise children that are happy, adaptable, and willing to learn and grow into their full potential. I heard that at home all the time.
I started reading books at an early age, my brother taught me how to pull letters into words, and words into sentences, and sentences into meaning.
Raising a child is a collective effort.
My father was and still is, even after his passing, a sounding board. He told me how he thinks about my actions, behavior, questions that I had for him, and then he asked me, what do I think, what is the best course of action for a specific scenario for everyone who is involved. Growing up in a kibbutz environment forces us to think about the society at large.
How do we affect other people with our behavior and actions? How thoughtful are we in our relationships with not only friends and family but with the Other, the person or group, or nation we have issues with?
These are big questions to ask on Father's Day, it is appropriate. At this point in time, mostly fathers are running our world, our nations, our international relations. And our world is in a dire situation. We need fathers to change our world and create a better place for our children to grow happy, adaptable, and willing to learn and expand their horizon - within a safe and peaceful world.
And yes, changing our world is a collective effort, all of us are needed for the task. That is my prayer on Father's Day and every day.
I send my love to all the fathers and wish you a day filled with happiness.
Yours,
Dohrea
Seann with our goddaughter, 2016.
