Today is the feast day of St. Joseph.
Today should be the ‘Catholic’ celebration of Fathers’ Day.
One of the names by which Jesus was known is “the son of the carpenter”.
There are a number of things about being a father I picked up from Joseph.
Fatherhood is very much like passing a threshold.
Or like crossing a bridge over to the other side,
excited by the unknown and thrilled by the adventure.
I had ideas what is on the other side;
but I got a lot more than I ever imagined.
Sure, there were difficulties;
but they fade into the background when I count the blessings and joys of fatherhood.
Joseph was a man of few words.
I can be very talkative and noisy yet there are many times
I have had to hold back my tongue as a father.
As a father, I learned to be kind more often than to be right all the time.
Like Joseph, I have been guided by dreams, of which I have a lot.
I have dreams for my family, dreams for each of my sons,
and now dreams for my apos.
And what a deep joy and delight it is when I get to see those dreams realized.
Joseph must have been bewildered many times
about the things happening in their family,
often not comprehending these things.
And so have I.
Life has brought us to so many places,
shared so many events and happenings,
enjoyed so many moments of sheer happiness and fun.
I would often wonder why and how;
but always grateful for all the blessings.
Joseph stayed on strong in his faith,
(He took Mary as his wife, where a lesser man would have abandoned her.)
a source of support and strength for Jesus and Mary,
(His influence on Jesus was palpable that he was referred to as a carpenter’s son.)
always compassionate and caring.
( Jesus’ first lessons about love and compassion must have been at the feet of Joseph.)
And so I pray that I too will be like him.