The legacy of fatherhood
By Charles P. Eberson
Senior Moments
Sitting on a sparsely populated beach as I did in Ventnor this week, can give one pause for reflection. With Father’s Day on my mind, I thought of my role as a son, father and grandfather.
My father was raised in the early portion of his life in an orphanage. His father passed away in the smallpox epidemic so my father did not have what one would call a role model. In looking back, I can say that he was never lacking in that role. He would take me deep sea fishing at Captain Starns in Atlantic City’s Inlet, bring me to Bader field to watch the banner planes swoop in low, hook the banners and climb practically straight up. We both found it exciting.
He loved motorcycles and one of his army buddies said my father rode like the wind and he could never keep up with him. My dad bought a motorcycle much to my mother’s chagrin and to make matters worse, he had a seat installed on the back just for me. There I was, going to my 5th grade class at Union Avenue School in Margate riding on the back of the motorcycle with my metal lunchbox squeezed between my chest and my father’s back.
As a side note, when I was in my twenties and had my own motorcycle, he would come to me and ask if he could borrow it for a short while. I had to tell him to be careful.
While he was in the Army Air Corps, as it was called at the time, he was stationed at Mitchell Field in Farmingdale, Long Island. There, in the Mess Hall, I was introduced to Chicken a la King, military style. No James Beard Award there. The years rolled by and I was blessed with a son and a daughter. Because of my father, I have strived to create deep and memorable experiences with them that will be indelibly printed onto their lives. We have traveled, camped, fished, rowed, surfed and most of all laughed. We also cried but I believe all in all, a decent example has been set.
My son is a father to two girls and a boy who is the oldest at 9 years of age. I could see the special bond forming between father and son. But today’s business world is fast paced, highly competitive and demanding for young families. It requires constant attention to advances in technology and the ever changing fluctuations in customers’ needs. Fatherhood requires a degree of vigilance that ebbs and flows but is forever constant. One cannot overlook the considerable challenge and potentially harmful effect that social media has on young children.
It is my hope that, as my father before me and hopefully as I have done, that my son will set an example of fatherhood for his children; an example that will provide them with memories of substance to carry forward and a roadmap for my grandson should he be fortunate enough to have children of his own.
A happy Fathers’ Day to all dads who put on the armor every day for their children and aspire to give them someone to look up to.
Charles Eberson has been in the newspaper business for over 25 years. He has worked as a writer, advertising executive, circulation manager and photographer. His photography can be viewed at charles-eberson.fineartamerica.com
