I’ve been a dad since 1995, and as Father’s Day 2010 approaches, and I reflect on Father’s Days past, I’d like to share with you, parts of my journey of a lifetime; the journey of fatherhood.

The day I found out my wife was pregnant, I was terrified. The one thing that I knew was that life was about to change for us both. The other thing I was sure about, was that I would do all that I could to help make sure our baby had the best possible start in life.

I bought books, and visited the library often; – I even talked to my father. There was so much information available for mothers-to-be, but not so much for dads; and I needed to find out all that I could about pregnancy, and newborn babies. My motto in life became: what’s good for the goose, is good for the gander! I avoided foods that my wife needed to avoid. When my wife stopped drinking caffeine and alcoholic beverages – I stopped too. I knew that by sharing these lifestyle changes, she would know just how committed I was to this pregnancy, and our new roles as parents.

Preparing our home for the baby was difficult, but I was anxious to create my own “assembly of war stories” to share with the older generation of dads, and the crib that we chose certainly provided hours of storyline!

Thankfully, we survived the nine months and were blessed by the arrival of our new family member. The birth of my baby girl was one of the most amazing moments of my life. We’ve had 2 more children since our fi rst daughter, and each pregnancy has been unique, but our commitment has never waned, and our devotion to our children’s success is still strong. I will forever be grateful to the woman that bore my children, and always humbled by the opportunity to be a dad. I continue to relish in the role that I have been given. I aim to be an involved and active father, and be so much more than the disciplinarian. I know that I will never be mom – and that’s okay. I am comfortable in my role as dad, and I’m glad that I get to be me with my kids.

June 20, 2010 is Father’s Day in the United States. It is not the busiest day for restaurants (that would be Mother’s Day), nor is it the most eagerly anticipated shopping day (Black Friday holds this distinction). Father’s Day doesn’t typically require postal workers to engage in mandatory overtime (that is April 15) and I’m pretty sure that Father’s Day is NOT the holiday that bankrolls the greeting card industry. ..but, even still this Father’s Day, I’m proud to be a father, and thankful that this is a job, from which I will never retire.

Erick Fisher
7016 W Villard Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53218

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