Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day
To all of you who break your back for your family
Anguish, so real to you
You shield it from your loved ones
Like a duck, your feet flap furiously beneath the water
Meanwhile above, your little ones only see a smooth ride

Happy Father's Day to those of you who lost in court
That sacrificed everything, who you are, the path that you were on
Tolerating and enduring an awful relationship
To make for your children, a more enjoyable life
And all to often, only to come out the other end at a deficit
In the eyes of the court, simply because you are a man

Happy Father's Day to the fathers in history
Whom either from ignorance or pride, went off to war to protect their family
Especially to those who were drafted
While others complained back home
About anything that was back home
They were taken, by force
And were left no choice but to go up and over the trench
Into an onslaught of gunfire, and at gunpoint behind
If they came home, they came home from a place which they could never explain

Happy Father's Day to all the papas who eat the shitty banana
So that their loved ones can have the best of the bunch
And especially to those who've done this, and never said a word

Even on this holiday
You want to pick up the tab
You'd rather give than to receive
What you need most is a trusted shoulder
Somewhere that you can be vulnerable, yet still come back as the rock that you are to your children
Does such a place exist?

I absolve your doubts, and shine a light in your direction
That you may feel vindicated for your sacrifices
All the sacrifices that blend into the landscape of your gender
And go unseen

I send you encouragement and strength, from the coffers of history
From your ancestors, that although terrified, mustered the courage to charge over the hill
To face the unimaginable
And so often the story's told
That they did so for us

I see you
Capable of making every day just a little more beautiful, more joyful
For the ones that we love

For father's like you, that is all there is
For father's like you, you've reached the Shangri-La of enlightenment
Because you see your well being in others
When we help the ones that we love
Or even a stranger in need
We help ourselves
For we've seen the eyes of God

-Goliath Flores

Authors note: In all earnestness
I forgot that today was Father's Day
I overheard someone say it
I just smiled at the fact that I had forgotten
For living the principles that I've made into a poem here

I'm a dedicated single father, who's main objective is to make our world a better place. Not just for my family, but for all. Please consider donating any amount via you favorite platform here, or purchase a mug below that leads to this poem. Send it as a gift! Thank you!