What’s the most memorable moment you’ve experienced as a father?

Being a father is the most important role a person can ever play. The journey is long and far from easy. Yet, through life’s highs and lows, fathers continuously grow alongside their children and bring joy and love that is irreplaceable.

We asked a few of the dads from VPLS to share their most memorable moments and here’s what they had to say…

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“Kids make a person grow up really fast!

I would say that the best part of being a dad is the feeling you get after you arrive home from a stressful day, and see their faces light up with excitement at seeing you. Looking at them reminds me of the carefree days of my childhood. Their passion, hopes, mistakes, lessons, playfulness, and compassion are what make me work that much harder every day.

Just to be a better person for them.”

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“I had just finished a 10-month deployment in Iraq and I was about to see my daughter for the first time since leaving her when she was only a month old. I thought, “Will she remember me?” “Will she cry?”

As I walked down the Arrivals tunnel, I imagined the worst possible outcome. Then…. I saw her… she was in a pink tutu, pig-tails in her hair, and a big smile. My wife pointed me out to her. With open arms, she reached for me, hugging me and smiling. Daddy was finally home.

My daughter is now about to turn eight and she has no memory of that day. But I know she still has that same feeling towards me when she sees me pull into the driveway after a long, hard day of work.”

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“As a new father of a seven-month-old baby boy, this Father’s Day is incredibly exciting for me.

Although being a new parent is challenging, it’s also a lot of fun. My son is constantly changing. One minute, he’s happily eating all his food, then the next minute, he spits it all out! You don’t really get a break during the weekend or after a long work day. As soon as you think you can catch up with some rest, the little one will make sure to keep you busy.

But as exhausting as it can be, it’s still totally worth it. His smile makes my entire DAY!”

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“Being a father, I found a completely different level of love and consciousness. Both of my girls tend to be quite shy, so to see them both perform in a school talent show with such confidence was so gratifying. Especially to see my youngest do her “Pink Panther” dance while the oldest did a duet with her best friend to the same theme song.

My sweet girls have taught me two valuable lessons: 1. The absolute necessity to be more patient and, 2. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

It’s awesome to re-experience a child-like sense of wonderment and imagination.”

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“I have a 3-year-old daughter, and for the most part, Mommy gets to spend more time with her. But pool and swim-time is exclusively a daddy-daughter thing!

My daughter has always loved water, from the time she started walking she would cackle with glee playing with the jets of water at local splash pads. I grew up swimming and always hoped we would swim together in our pool. When she turned two, we put her in the pool with a puddle-jumper floaty and over several weeks, I taught her how to swim. At first, she wobbled a lot and drank a fair bit of our (salty) pool water, but after several coaching sessions, she is now able to jet around the pool with me by paddling her arms and kicking her feet.

I could not be more proud of her. Now that summer is around the corner, I’m looking forward to more fun at the beach or in our pool – those are the best parts of being a dad!”

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“For me, the best part of being a dad is watching my kids grow.

One day, I remember we went shopping for my eldest son’s shoes. He was about two years old and was barely starting to talk. When we left the store, he sheepishly said “Arigatou” to me, that’s thank you in Japanese. My son had grown into a little guy that was able to show appreciation. I thought “Wow!” This is a proud moment of being a father because I didn’t have to tell him to say “thank you.” He was able to say it all by himself.”

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“I had kids early in life, and late in life. I wasn’t sure that I was cut out for the dad job, but somehow the universe knows who to bless with kids.

I was blessed with five kids! I learned through the years that you tend to get out what you put into child rearing. Luckily, I learned this lesson early enough to ensure that I wound up with five awesome human beings. Each of my kids has their strengths and weaknesses, and that’s what makes them individuals. Two of my kids are dealing with challenges in life that they may not win. Regardless of the challenges that God has placed in their path, I love them, and I will always be at their side fighting with them.

My proudest moment as a dad was recently when my daughter, Amanda, graduated with an Associate’s degree in Veterinary Medicine and dedicated her life to caring for animals. She works full time at an Animal emergency care hospital, and also part-time at a veterinary clinic.”

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“What amazes me the most about being a father is that I realized I can only help to shape and mold them. In the end, they will grow up to be their own unique selves! One can only hope you gave it your best effort in coming up with version 1.1.

As they get older, I have noticed a shift on who shares the latest tech. It used to be me! My eldest worked on her Computer Science bachelors, back in Manila, and I would go and ask her about HTML and web programming (hey from a guy that started his IT career programming in COBOL in a mainframe environment, seeing a web page source in HTML is really daunting, lol).

I am proud to see what they have achieved so far, and I am looking forward to seeing what the future has in store for them.”

We want to wish everyone a Happy Father’s Day and hope you cherish every moment you have together with those you love.

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