I was a speaker in Church this morning. The topic was about Father's Day. Just wanted to share with you what I composed for 7 hours, 3 of which were spent just lying down thinking of what to do. haha... This talk's one of my favorites actually :)

***

Good morning brothers and sisters.

When I started making this talk, I thought “What else is there to say about Father’s Day?”. Much has already been said about this day and I really wanted to take this talk out of its usual lines. I searched LDS.org hoping to find some ideas, and there was one particular result that caught my eye – an article entitled “I Just Don’t Have That Kind of Dad”. As I read the article, I thought “oo nga noh, there really are times that we don’t see eye-to-eye with our dad” which is why I thought of pointing out three situations in which both the fathers and their children could find some humor in and learn from as well.

About 4 years ago, I bought this shirt saying “when mom says no, daddy says yes”. Siguro sa dami ng beses na pinagbibigyan tayo ng mga tatay natin sa mga gusto natin, sa minsang humindi sila, nagtatampo na agad tayo. This brings us to:

Situation #1: Nagkatampuhan kami ni Daddy.

My dad and I don’t usually fight, but when we do, our fights don’t involve any of the punishments like hindi na pwedeng lumabas or wala akong allowance. Kunsenyahan ang laging nangyayari, at alam naman natin siguro kung sinong laging natatalo – AKO, sino pa nga ba? I remember one time that I was late for Church and what my dad did was to text me “Jenn, i hope you realize that you have to change your behavior in coming to church on sunday. Remember that you set the tone of the rest of your life by the little things you do today”. Sa totoo lang, mas ginusto ko pang mawalan ng allowance kesa makunsensya nung mga oras na yun.

I believe it’s important for fathers to instill lessons when they scold their kids, like what my dad did to me. If fathers don’t make them understand why the child is being punished, he/she may stop the bad behavior, yes, but merely out of fear. Fear might cover the child’s path to the realization that he/she did something wrong. Besides, it’s much better to hear that kids can confidently say “NO” to temptation because they know it will not do them any good and not because they are scared of losing their allowance.

Children should also realize that it’s difficult for their fathers to scold them, but of course, it’s done because kids have to learn. Our dads may not grant us every single thing that we ask of them, but we can be sure that they will always have their best interest for us and will do everything in their power to provide us with what is needed.

Situation #2: Missing In Action si Daddy.

In talk I gave two years ago, I told the story of a wise father who once told his daughter “it’s not the presents of a father that matters, but his presence that really counts”. This father has always made it a must to spend time his daughter despite his busy schedule. He’d take her to work with him, be there during awarding ceremonies in school, and even take her to the nearest bay to watch the sunset. This story is very significant to me because this daughter is me. Of course things changed as I grew older and now, we bond over sports, stories, and the best part – driving.

Sometimes, all a kid ever needs is to know is that his father’s right there. Make yourself known while your kids are young. Lalo na pag mga bata pa kasi diba ang lambing lambing pa nila sa mga magulang nila. Palakasin na yung closeness sa parents habang bata pa lang para pag tanda nila, close pa rin. Also, I think it was Elder Uchtdorf who said in one of the general conferences “to the Fathers, make memories with your kids”. Each memory makes the bond between a father and a child stronger. Parang buhok – ang daling putulin ng isang piraso, pero pag dumami ng dumami na yung buhok, hindi na napuputol. So be there for each milestone of the kid’s life and especially when it matters – they will remember you for that. These memories are priceless, so don’t ever pass up the chance to be part of them.

The last situation and probably the heaviest of the three is:

Situation #3: Hindi ko alam kung paano ko sasabihin sa tatay ko kung gaano siya ka-importante sa buhay ko.

Personally, I’ve never really told my dad this face-to-face, only in letters and cards. I hold true to actions speak loader than words dahil nahihiya kasi akong sabihin sa kanya (buti na lang wala siya ditto ngayon). So anong pwedeng gawin?

First, we obey. Exodus 20:12 states “Honour thy father and they mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee”. By obeying our father, we show him that we respect him and we keep ourselves out of harm’s way as well. Second, try to meet his expectations. But sometimes even if we don’t meet these expectations, it’s good enough for them to know that we put a lot effort into a task. Third, include him in your prayers. Forth, don’t ever forget to thank him. And fifth, simply talk to him – even after dealing with many people at work, I’m sure they’d always be glad to hear from their kids.

In closing, I’d like to share with you a poem entitled “What Makes a Dad”.


I know that our fathers were hand-picked by Heavenly Father especially for us. I know that through His plan we can make the fondest memories here on earth and even more in the life hereafter with them. Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers! And I leave these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.


Happy Father's Day to all the dear fathers and fathers to be! :)