Father's Day Special - Fatherly Visit

Fatherly Visit

Up I awoke from the slumbering stormy sleep

My heavy unsatisfied eyes itching unpardonable,

My pillows soaked with sweet bitter sweat which upon the bed could not slip,

Much trouble abound causing nights of thoughtfulness against needs insatiable.

The ailing door by my rickety entrance cried aloud with a gentle sob,

A leap from my heart was a proof of great despair.

“Never mind”, my head whispered to my heart’s robe,

“You’ve hurt none for fear of want but set thou forth to hear.”

Alas! My eyes beheld one so greatly named HOPE,

“I’ve come as thy benefactor” said he.

Who will keep thee company in here? So asked I,

Seeing I’ve got no father to succor me even with a soap.

“Father thou may not have but thou hast so looked on me,

COURAGE so affirms it for thou didn’t put him off.

PATIENCE whispers daily to me with a tell of thee,

PERSISTENCE and PERSEVERANCE cheer thou with accolades you cannot tell of.”

Such glad tidings from HOPE I couldn’t contain in my bowels,

Such console and heal many who are broken for a loss.

Such you may not fathom but it’s likened unto me a gold,

Such unto many who shiver ought to expire their inner cold.

“They that got fathers got them not by chance nor by chants,

But by divine ordinance it has been established not by rants.

I, HOPE is to many a father that rather wouldn’t fail,

But many who refuse my company abound in much trail.”

- Poem by PraiseGod

The Impacts of Father Involvement on Children and Home building

The diverse effects father involvement has on child development can be grouped together in four categories: emotional/psychological, social, behavioral and cognitive/academic.

1. In regards to emotional and psychological development, Children with warm and emotionally responsive fathers are less emotionally reactive, have higher levels of overall well-being and experience less depression  and mood and anxiety disorders. Involvement with children at age seven reduces risk of psychological maladjustment, and involvement at age sixteen predicts less psychological distress in adulthood according to world research (Flouri & Buchanan, 2003).

2. Involvement benefits children socially, as children with warm fathers have been found to relate better with other children and to exhibit more prosocial behaviors towards others. 

3. Behaviorally, father involvement impacts children by decreasing externalizing behavior hyperactivity and dysregulation (Flouri, 2008) and increasing behavioral self-regulation. This means that they are intrinsically and extrinsically challenged to be well mannered.

4. In the area of cognitive function and academics, children with involved fathers have higher IQs on average, have increased executive function, improved school conduct and scholastic self-concept.

More so, father's effect on women has  recently become a growing area of interest. Women whose partners are involved prenatally use more health services on average, experience lighter workloads, and have a lower risk of post-partum depression. Fathers who are more involved in the home also promote future generations of involvement and gender equality: their daughters are more likely to have higher career aspirations and their sons are more likely to engage in more gender equal behaviors in their own relationships.

Furthermore, one overlooked beneficiary of involved fatherhood are fathers themselves. In fact, research shows that involved fatherhood makes men happier and healthier. Meaningful involvement with their children is reported by fathers to be among their most important sources of well-being and happiness (Eggebeen & Knoester, 2001). Studies find that fathers who report close, non-violent connections with their children live longer, have fewer mental and physical health problems, are less likely to abuse drugs, are more productive at work, and report being happier than men who do not have this strong connection. Most fathers aspire to success not just as financial providers and in their careers, but also as involved, loving fathers.

In conclusion, as shown in the poem above, those who are without fathers and mothers who are without husbands have themselves at the sure security of HOPE which is literally father to the fatherless and husband to the widow and single mothers and should therefore continue to be hopeful in life with COURAGE, PATIENCE, PERSISTENCE and PERSEVERANCE, positively looking on to the brighter side of life with their worthwhile endeavours for there will surely be solution to their desires. 

Edited by PraiseGod Wome