For the most precious things in life— beauty, love, nature’s majesty, romance—everyday language is not enough to express our sentiments.
That is why, for the precious gift of children, fathers have taken to writing poetry. The joy, amusement, wonder, gravity, and weighty sense of responsibility brought into a man’s life by fathering a child can sometimes only be expressed in poetry. Hear the range of feelings of these poet-fathers:
• A Parental Ode to My Son by Thomas Hood
• The Children’s Hour by Henry W. Longfellow
• The Little Chap who Follows Me by John Wooden
The spiritual importance that fathers bear in the home has led others to pen hymns and poems reflecting on a father’s influence and encouraging men to mirror the heavenly Father in their parenting:
• A Christian Home by Barbara Hart
• When Father Reads the Book by G.E. Foster
• When Father Prays (unknown)
• Wanted: A Man to Lead (Wesleyan Methodist)
• A Father’s Prayer (unknown)
One such poem—“My Prayer” by Nauzon W Braphamm—asks the Lord for help in fulfilling a role that is often beyond human effort.
Father, today I bring to Thee
This boy of mine whom Thou hast made.
In everything he looks to me,
In turn, I look to Thee for aid…
Hold Thou my hand as I hold his,
And so guide me that I may guide.
Teach me, Lord, that I may teach,
And keep me free from foolish pride…
Children, too, have reflected on the father-relationship in the other direction, noting and thanking fathers for their influence in their lives. Read these classic poems by acclaimed poets from E.E. Cummings to Sylvia Path. One such poem, Edgar Guest’s Only a Dad begins,
Only a dad with a tired face,
Coming home from the daily race,
Bringing little of gold or fame
To show how well he has played the game;
But glad in his heart that his own rejoice
To see him come and to hear his voice…
If you resonate best with contemporary poems, consider these Father-Child poems and Son/Daughter poems. Still other modern poems are written from the perspective of mothers who have watched the priceless role their husbands play in their children’s lives:
Children Need a Daddy by Becky Ginn
Children need a Daddy for many, many things:
Like holding them high off the ground where the sunlight sings!
Like being the deep music that tells them all is right
When they awaken frantic with the terrors of the night.
Like being the great mountain that rises in their heart
And shows them how they might get home when all else falls apart.
Like giving them the love that is their sea and air,
So diving deep or soaring high they’ll always find him there.
Finally, consider whether short Father’s Day poems or Father’s Day poems for kids may be best for your family. A simple, heartfelt thank you to dad is always appropriate!
It’s a Dad Kind of Thing (unknown)
It’s a dad kind of thing to protect you and see that the world treats you right,
To offer his willing assistance any hour of the day or the night.
It’s a dad kind of thing to stand by you, if one of your bubbles should burst,
To make sure you know you’re important and know that with him you come first.
To give you his all but still wonder if there’s something more he could do –
It’s a dad kind of thing to keep showing that he’ll always be there for you…
