Father's day was celebrated today in Spain, as always, coinciding with the festivity of Saint Joseph. And just by pure coincidence, today in Ireland what was celebrated was Mother's day, as it's the fourth Sunday of Lent.
The dates vary from country to country, but the intention is the same: honouring each of our parents in a special way, at least once a year. Thanking them for everything they've done for us, everything they've given us, starting with the gift of life.
Es curioso ver cómo va evolucionando la relación con nuestros padres a lo largo de los años, vamos pasando por distintas etapas… Os copio aquí una versión de las muchas que hay por ahí de cómo ve un hijo a su padre a distintas edades:
- At age 4: My daddy can do anything.
- At age 7: My dad knows a lot, a whole lot.
- A los 8 años: Resulta que Papá no lo sabe todo…
- At age 12: Oh, well, naturally Father doesn`t know that, either.
- At age 14: Father? Hopelessly old-fashioned.
- At age 21: Oh, that man is out-of-date. What did you expect?
- At age 25: He knows a little bit about it, but not much.
- At age 30: Maybe we ought to find out what Dad thinks.
- At age 35: A little patience. Let`s get Dad`s assessment before we do anything.
- At age 50: I wonder what Dad would have thought about that. He was pretty smart.
- At age 60: My dad knew absolutely everything!
- At age 65: I`d give anything if Dad were here so I could talk this over with him. I really miss that man.
What do you think? Do you agree? And we could say the same thing about mothers. If you want proof, you only need to ask your kids what they think of you, especially if they´re teenagers 🙂
Por cierto, ya que estamos con el tema de honrar a nuestros mayores, aprovechemos hoy también para recordar a los padres de nuestros padres, y a los padres de sus padres… En definitiva, recordar de dónde venimos, y celebrar que gracias a todos nuestros antepasados estamos nosotros aquí, por mucho que haya partes de nuestra historia familiar que a lo mejor no nos entusiasmen. Todos lo hicieron lo mejor que pudieron con el conocimiento y los recursos que tenían.
From here, I'd like to wish health and happiness to all fathers and mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers. And wish for us all not to wait until they´re gone to realize how much we can learn from them.