This could mean many things to many people depending on the experience with your dad who may have been present or not. As Father’s Day weekend approached, I was really missing my dad. In my life, he was my dad and a constant presence in the family home. Even when he aged into his 90’s he was always there at home in his chair.
My dad was born on the homestead of his parents and lived on that piece of property until he died. He farmed both grain and livestock, so it meant that he was never far away from home year around.
Many years of Fathers days, I struggled to buy a card for him because he was not the dad that many cards expressed. He was not the one who taught me to ride a bike, he was not the one who played catch with me, and he was not the one who listened very well either. Some years it was a challenge to pick out the appropriate card that fit our relationship and my experience with him. But I knew he loved me, and I did feel connected to him even though I did not understand him all the time and I wanted him to be different to suit my ideal.
I began to wonder about the word and meaning of “father” and the Universal father. It is not the one who brings home the income and provides food and shelter. It is the energy of first cause in the creation, masculine principle.
Ernest Holmes writes about the universal principle of Father as the Absolute in the triune nature of the being. The Thing Itself. It is first cause in the trinity of the universe. And man/woman has the same trinity of being as the Universal Triune. “He is the son within the Father. The Father is greater than the son, but the son has the same life essence as has the Father or Parent Mind.” An aspect of Creation is the father energy. “Father-Mother God: The Masculine and Feminine Principles of Being, as included in the Androgynous One.” It is the Parent Mind.
I like the term “Parent Mind” and I feel like a beloved of that Parent Mind. I sense the strong guiding aspect of spirit and I feel the warmth love and security of It as well. When I practice the Presence, contemplate and meditate on Oneness, I am at ease in this Parent Mind. We separate it out into Father/Mother/Spirit understanding that operations of the Triune of the Universe is the triune of our being.
In life, if we could know our wholeness despite how we were raised with or without parents, how much healthier and resilient the outcome with less struggle, most probable and easily said. I remember reading somewhere that we were not meant to struggle!! It made me laugh because I did not believe it at the time. Now, I understand. And I want this for the children growing up in the world. I want them to know the Parent Mind, that which never deserts; it guides; and it loves.
My dad was both father and mother energy. He was the provider and the warmth of a hug. The last visit with him was wonderful and we had to leave him because he was needing to rest. As my hand was turning the knob to open the door to leave, intuitively, I stopped and went back to him. I put my forehead to his and said my dad’s usual farewell, “’Til we meet again.” He looked me right in the eye and said, “That’s right.” He transitioned one week later. I treasure those last few minutes beyond measure. Happy Father’s Day, dad.
Namaste, Rev Gwen.