Submitted by Shara Lawrence-Weiss

With Father's Day here, I thought it might be fun to share some thoughts about fatherhood, from the viewpoints of my family.

First I will share my own viewpoint:

For me, "good fatherhood" is very closely linked to many of the character traits my own father demonstrated. For instance:

• A powerful work ethic
• An artistic side (he's a painter, muralist, singer, writer, musician and more)
• He played the piano for us while we danced around the living room
• He required that we say "yes ma'am" to my mother during an argument (which really ticked me off back then)
• He never had porn around - I didn't even know what porn was until I was in high school (when my boyfriend showed me his own father's magazines).
• He respected my mother and honored her as his counterpart, as the co-creator of his children and as an intelligent, capable woman
• He never hit my mother
• He never screamed or yelled
• He demanded respect of the family - no gossiping about each other (with 4 girls in the family, this wasn't easy!)
• He took us to church and played faith-based songs in the car, filling our hearts with a hope for the future...of something more to come
• He insisted that we eat dinner together as a family - every single night
• He led us in prayer at the dinner table and taught us about charity work, helping the poor and empathizing with the needs of others
• He was calm, loving and firm
• He fixed things - and allowed me to help, even though I was a girl

I'm not saying he was perfect or that things couldn't have been better. I do think it's valuable to note, however, that my now husband has many of these same attributes. I was drawn to him because of his gentle nature, his respect for women and his desire to leave a meaningful legacy of love. I would say, without hesitation, that my husband is a good father.

I also believe that countless other fathers and single dads deserve a shout-out. With so many heartbroken run-a-way men leaving a legacy of emptiness in my generation, I hold a great respect for the dads who stick around, help, love, and wish to accept responsibility for the children they co-created.

Happy Father's Day to my dad, to my husband and to all GOOD FATHERS out there - however that might be defined!

My husband shares:

A good father loves his wife. He makes sure that the kids know his wife is more important than anything else - so they know they live in a safe and loving environment. A good father is not quick to anger. A good father enjoys his children, wants to spend time with them, play with them, teach them and correct them. He knows that his primary role with his children is to raise them up to be happy, productive, loving, worthwhile, meaningful adults.

My 11-year-old son states (about his birth father):

Someone who is a loving, caring, fun to be around person. He takes me to movies, on trips, he's nice and he's super duper fun to be around.

My 3-year-old daughter states:

I don't know.

My 18-month-old son states:

"Na! Na! Na!"

ABOUT the Author:

Shara Lawrence-Weiss is the owner of Mommy Perks, Personal Child Stories, Early Childhood News and Resources and Kids Perks. She has a background in education, early childhood, nanny work, published freelance, marketing and special needs.