Father's Day

I must confess, I've never been a great supporter of 'Father's Day', mainly due to a misconception about its origins. It was certainly not a celebratory occasion when I was a kid, but emerged some time after WW2 when US influence on Australian culture was at its height. I (mistakenly) thought it was created simply as a marketing opportunity for the retail sales industry. Not so. It was the brain-child of a US civil war veteran's daughter early last century, when she thought there should be a day of celebration of fathers to parallel the religiously generated appreciation of mothers. It didn't really take hold in the US until the 1930s ... so, it's not really surprising that we didn't 'get it' until post WW2.

I still think it's only of real value to retailers though. I feel good about being a Dad everyday I get to admire my own son and his children.