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Fatherís Day is a good day to say ëI love youí

Dads, do you love your children? Have you told them lately that you love them? Do you know if they know you really love them?
I know you show how much you care by working hard to buy the things they need, by showing up for dinner every night, by putting together their new bikes, tossing a ball to them once in a while, by attending their games and concerts, etc.
But have you actually said the words to your children?
Children, being less complicated than adults, see only the top layer of life ñ the reality of the here and now.
An adolescent canít read into your many trips away from home how much you care. And teens may understand that you show them in many ways, but they still need the affirmation in words.
There is no substitute for putting an arm around a shoulder and saying - I love you, son or I love you, daughter.
Many dads seem to choke on the words, or are frightened it gives them the wrong image. Some dads never heard the words from their fathers so they donít realize how important it is to say them to their children.
Real men say I love you to their kids. Honestly, they do.
A song some years ago by Mike and the Mechanics urged people to say how they feel about each other ìin the living years,î because when youíre gone, itís to late.
I know my own dad loved me because he worked hard at a tough job on the railroad, in the cold, the heat, rain or snow. He drove a long distance to work each day, never grumbling about the drive. He helped us with our science projects, put up with us using his tools and leaving them lay around, and expressed his concern for our safety and happiness to my mother.
But dad never looked me in the eyes and said, ìI love you, daughter.î At least not when I was old enough to remember.
I understand he was doing the best he could to show how much he cared. He was good to us, to my mom, to my husband and then to the grandchildren. He was always thinking about us, because he would come up with things that he thought would help us in our daily lives. But the words ñ those precious three words ñ he just couldnít say.
On this Fatherís Day, when the gifts are being opened, the barbecue sauce swabbed on the ribs and the cards are being read, take time to exchange an ìI love youî with your dad, and then each of you will know for sure.

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