Action Packed Life

A father’s life should be action-packed, whether in his twenties or senior years. This lifestyle builds up physical health, upgrades knowledge, develops a network of relationships and a robust spiritual life. As fathers, let us make the best out of our lives with all these memories we make with everyone.

First, our physical health. Hit the gym, join a bike group, climb the mountains, frolic in the sand, etc. All these are done with the family and friends in mind. If the wife likes to play table tennis or badminton, so be it. Let’s do it! If our son wants to go fishing, swimming, or a twice-a-week martial arts session like Aikido, let us go! Let us accompany our daughters whether they play volleyball or football in the leagues. Bonding is the key to these organized activities. Details for preparation are learned on every trip to the mountains, tournaments, etc. Exposure to these activities offers us more chances for friendships, muscle development, and clear arteries.

Second, there is a saying, “Unless one is thrown in a heap of garbage, one would not know cleanliness.” In a trek to a mountain, we see the lights and shadows, as the gurus would say. We see trash, denuded parts of the mountain, traces of poverty, laggards who always complain, the fast and the furious and so much more. In fishing, the lucky ones are the patient, the storytellers, and the superstitious. All in all, we strive to be friendly, polite, and caring, toward beginners.

Third, the professional life, join organizations, study continuously, attend conventions and seminars. We always aim to be competent in our chosen field.

Fourth, the most important is our spiritual life. A person who does not have this is in a worse state than material poverty. Have recourse to the sacraments of Reconciliation and the Holy Eucharist. Strive to be in a state of grace, for all that life entails will just follow smoothly. Grace nourishes our souls, or, in today’s parlance, grace recharges us. One’s apostolate is really just an overflow of our interior life. Moreover, we have to be grounded in solid doctrine and formation. As such, we ought to seek the means for proper formation.

In all our activities as dads, aside from providing for the needs of our family, let us try to look for what the world needs and intersect it with the desires that lead us to deep joy. In other words, we have an advocacy. Whether it be cleaning the beachside, trekking the mountains, planting trees, finding ways to alleviate unjust systems, or helping our parishes in any way. Final call: never stop giving oneself! Retirement is a modern human invention. Finally, invoke our Blessed Mother in all the tasks we find ourselves doing, and we will have life in abundance, just like the flowing wine at the Wedding at Cana. (Johnny Sulit)