When is Father’s Day again?

In a few days, many of us will be celebrating Father’s Day on June 20.  Father’s Day around the world have different origins, they could have come from religion, politics, or just out of pure love to thank all hard-working male parents who took great care of us.  Having lived in Asia, North America, and Europe in various periods of my life, I always feel very confused by when exactly is Father’s day?  It turns out that there are different dates to celebrate Dads around the world.  I always called home to wish my dad and grandfathers on the “wrong” day, depending on where in the world I was at that moment!   Well, it never hurts to talk to them and tell them you love them multiple times in a year anyways!

Capture the moments

Somehow, I always find it more difficult to find gift ideas for Father’s Day than Mother’s Day!  I used to make little handcrafts for my dad for this special day, and he would keep all of them in his desk drawer and on his desk when the drawer ran out of space through the years.  When I was nine or ten I made him a glazed ceramic paper weight from pottery class and he kept it on his desk all these years.  It is now standing next to a proud collection of crafts and memorabilia created by my daughters and nephews and his desk is getting a bit too small to put anything else!  Maybe the best gift is something that can bring back great family moments, that is collectible, and can remind Dad the achievement he has made as a father and grandfather.  Start a scrapbook of Dad and add new pages to it every year, there are great ideas on how to start one here.

photo by: @disasterswithdad / @ellijunior

Make new memories together

Another great way to create memory together is by spending quality time with dad and experience something new together for the first time (great opportunity to take photos for next year’s scrapbook page too!)  If there is not enough time to organize anything elaborate, small gestures go a long way too.  Simple activities like taking a walk along Dad’s favorite hiking trail with him can be a great bonding moment.  Ask the kids to drop their electronic devices and join grandpa at the barbeque to learn how to cook up a mean steak would mean so much to him.

No matter when and how we celebrate Father’s Day around the world, the aim is always to express our appreciation to all the father-figures in our lives that contributed in no small way who we have become today.

Happy Father’s Day to all Sparky Dads!