It’s hard to believe that in almost two weeks the year 2026 will be halfway over, but time seems to pass much quicker these days, quite possibly attributed to all the activities we’re involved with day in and day out. A while back, we waited and waited, anxiously anticipating the arrival date of a vacation we had planned, and in, what seemed to be, the blink of an eye, it came and went seemingly faster than the snap of our fingers. Special days every year seem to creep up on us and arrive, sometimes before we can even be ready for them, especially some, where the person being honored is no longer with us.

Tomorrow marks one of those days for me and my family, in a number of situations, as it I’m sure hits many of us as we celebrate Father’s Day 2026. In our immediate family, we celebrate all the fathers in our family who are still with us, and three (Pop Joe X, Dad Earl, and Brother Tom), now co-residing in heaven and in our hearts and minds, and will continue to do so until we meet them again in the great beyond.

In celebrating all three of those fathers today, I’m including a piece of writing I came across a couple months ago. It was set to some soft music, and talked about fathers. The words seemed to be talking about all three of the fathers from our immediate family who left us way too soon. I was able to copy the words of this poem and save it on my phone, so I could pay tribute to Pop, Dad, and Dr. Bro this Father’s Day.

The title of the poem is “The Strongest Man I Ever Knew Was My Dad.” I am not altogether sure of the true author of those words, but it was included in a speech delivered by Dr. Rick Rigsby, a former college professor and author, who used those words as he described his father, who was, as he also described him as a “cook and a third grade dropout.”

I’m not sure if Rigsby’s statement were actually the title of the poem I found, as there was no author mentioned in the poem I discovered, but they appeared nonetheless, in my research, and are a good fit for the celebration of this weekend.

The words of the actual poem are:

“My dad was never loud,

But his strength was undeniable.

He stood tall

Even when life tried

to break him down.

I saw him tired

but never giving up.

I saw him worried,

but never showing fear.

He carried pain silently,

just to keep us smiling.

He gave his best years

to build our futures

and never asked for anything in return.

Back then,

I didn’t understand his sacrifices.

But I do now—

He was my dad.

Looking back, in the time Pop was with us, and we were with him, he was firm. He had expectations for us, and of us. He demanded that we respect others in so many facets of our lives. He expected us to do what we were told and follow what he said, for as long as we lived under his and mom’s roof. That went for the schools we attended, the people we encountered in stores, schools, associated with our religion, people who were our superiors in our jobs, our activities, and anywhere else we encountered people. He demanded we respect all property of all places we were in, whenever we were in them, and there were consequences for not living up to any of his expectations. But he wasn’t loud, even when he yelled at us. He never showed his pain to some, if he knew it would make someone feel pain in their hearts. In his last days, when relatives were coming in and out to visit him in the hospital, he was in pain, and he expressed that pain to others, but when I went into his room, he knew I was weaker, so he hid his pain, and I didn’t see what others saw before he passed. The strength that must have taken for him to do that for me, seems to be the crux of the poem above, in my mind. He and mom gave up so much, so we could all have so much. He worked hard, sacrificed much, faced trying situations with worry I am sure, but you would rarely know it. He is the subject of this poem.

Sally’s Dad, Earl, was a quiet man. That doesn’t mean he never cut loose with laughter, or didn’t feel the stress that life gives everyone at times, but Dad Earl kept his sights forward, and did any, and everything, to keep his family taken care of every day. Dad Earl loved playing golf, and I had the pleasure of playing with him on occasion, and I have told this about him numerous times, that you could paint two lines from tee to green ten feet apart on every hole of a golf course, and as I’d be definitely playing outside those lines, Dad Earl would be consistently between those lines at least, or it seemed, 90 percent of the time. That was the way Dad Earl lived his life, on the straight and narrow, and he taught that to his children too. He had a wife, raised five children, ran his own business, and was loved and respected by everyone who came in contact with him. You never saw much pain, or worry, as he gave his best to help build his family’s future, and tried to keep everyone smiling, but I’m sure he felt it at times. He too, is the subject of this poem.

Brother Tom also could be the motivation for the words in this poem. Tom was a quiet man, until he was helping with a cause or helping fellow workers, friends, and especially his family. Then he showed his passion. He had very strong beliefs and taught our nephew, Joe, to hang onto his beliefs with strength and conviction. Tom believed in everything he undertook and through his and Lisa’s home teaching of Joe, they were able to set the foundation for a strong future for Joe. His strength in his fight with cancer, and still being able to make sure those he’d be leaving behind well taken care of, and being able to appreciate what time he had left and make even more memories for him and his family, must have taken every ounce of strength he had, though you could never know how much worry, and pain he was experiencing.

Tom was a visionary. Mom always said they named him appropriately he was often doubting things that were said, as did St. Thomas in doubting the Resurrection of Christ. Tom wasn’t doubting, he was always searching to find more, learn more, teach more, laugh more, and live more, even in the short time he had left. He definitely taught those lessons to his son. So yeah, he also is one you can say was being spoken about in this poem.

I’m sure many of those who read this narrative can see their own fathers, grandfathers, etc., in the words written, and it’s the hope of the VFTB, that everyone can close their eyes and remember special times spent with the patriarch of their families, and imagine what they did, sacrificed, and worried about as they made good lives for their families.

So, as we celebrate all fathers tomorrow, those still with us, those who now and will always live forever in our hearts, and my son, my sons-in-law, my grandsons, my grandsons-in-law, my brothers, and brothers-in-law, nephews, nephews-in-law, cousins, cousins-in-law, uncles, uncles-in law, be they still with us or not, and all the fathers, dads, papas, pops, grand, foster, step, half, and God fathers, and any others who take on the role of a father, may you all be blessed with the words of this poem and may it become a permanent part of your lives. Happy Father’s Day!