Father’s Day is not only for biological dads—but for all father figures, regardless of gender, who help keep the family whole, happy and healthy.
Last year, I got my driver’s license and I inherited my lolo’s old Toyota Vios that he owned since 2005. We lost him back in 2019 and I’d like to think that he’s up there looking out for me when I’m on the road. I’m currently working on changing out the coolant and it’s made me realize how far I’ve come and how much I’ve learned about cars without having much help from my father.
I’m the eldest guy in our family with my three younger brothers still studying. We’ve all been together with our mom since we left an abusive situation with our father in 2016. Since then, it’s been the five of us together and I’ve had to learn a lot about managing a house and raising young men while being one myself.
We’ve all been together with our mom since we left an abusive situation with our father in 2016. Since then, it’s been the five of us together and I’ve had to learn a lot about managing a house and raising young men while being one myself.
I had to learn quickly about many things like home repairs and how to deal with people as “the man of the house.” I was never alone though and having a wonderful support system of mentors gave me the strength to take on these challenges.
One of the main responsibilities of a dad is to teach. You must teach your kid to be strong and prepared to handle everything from bullies to taxes. It’s important to have a figure to keep you grounded and focused. In my case, it wasn’t just one person I’m blood-related to.
This Father’s Day, I feel grateful to everyone who taught me how to live right, whether man or woman, and that always starts with my mother. The countless nights she spends working and worrying to make sure we’re okay always gives me strength.
She has a big heart and I see it every day when she asks how I am and how she makes sure our house is always a welcome place with my brothers and our pets. She’s as tough as any dad out there and she definitely drilled into me the importance of treating a woman right.
I’m especially thankful to all the other men in my family for helping me be the better version that they believe I could be. I think about it all the time—how lucky I am to have a childhood where I was able to learn from them realities of life—especially life on the road running errands!
I remember my lolo on my dad’s side gifting me my first pair of real basketball shoes and countless days just facing Metro Manila traffic with my lolo on my mom’s side as we ran errands. They were important experiences that made my childhood fun.
I feel grateful to everyone who taught me how to live right, whether man or woman, and that always starts with my mother.
I think, especially in this day and age, you can find a lot of people with “dad energy” outside of the family. It’s so crazy but very good to see content creators we grew up with like Cong and Pewdiepie become family men and the constant love they show their kids shows a level of maturity that you can’t help but aspire to.
So this Father’s Day goes out to every father and every “dad” who’s not a father but gives off that “dad energy.” That energy is the strong wisdom and fun memories you can give to someone growing up. It’s everyone who can give the youth the confidence to move forward in life despite setbacks, to be a beacon of what fatherly love can be like.
I think this weekend, I’ll teach my brother Matteo how to drive and we’ll keep that dad energy going.