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Poems
for Dad
Fathers
Day poems: Write poems for
dad, read poems about dad
or buy a Fathers
Day gift of poems for dad
(see left).
This year,
Fathers Day is on Sunday
20th June 2004. Why not write
your Fathers Day poems for
dad and win your dad a
Whiskey Gift Set
(including a bottle of
House of Campbell's finest
Scotch Whiskey with a
crystal whiskey glass, a
cigar and some luxury
Belgian Chocolates), delivered to your
dad in time for Fathers Day. The winning poet will feature their poem on this website with a write up on the poem and the reaction of their Dad on receiving the gift. See
Submission
Guidelines 
Read
Bobby Weedall's winning
2003 Fathers Day poem. 
The tradition of
Fathers Day was founded in America, Washington.
It all started with a lady called Sonora Dodd who first thought of the idea of
Fathers Day while listening to a
Mothers Day sermon in 1909.
Sonora wanted a special day to honour her Father, William Smart. Smart, who was a Civil War veteran, was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. Mr Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington State.
After Sonora became an adult she realised the selflessness her Father had shown in raising his children as a single parent. It was her Father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a courageous, selfless, and loving man. Sonora's Father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first
Fathers Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June 1910.
President Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, supported the idea of a national
Fathers Day. Then in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.
The following selection of
poems for dad, are published in
'It's A Dad'z
Life'. Originally published in 1993 and
re-published in a revised 10th Anniversary
edition in 2003.
It includes poems about
dad for a great Fathers
Day gift.
Dad's Daydream
Mothers are one thing. Everyone knows
They like flowers and chocolates and beautiful clothes.
But Dad, ah! he's different, he's not keen on crocks,
Or slippers or hankies or three-quarter socks.
Now a bottle of whisky would go down a treat,
Or a ticket for City (with executive seat).
Or new set of golf clubs complete with a bag?
(There's as much chance of that as an XJS Jag!)
But when his day comes, in the middle of June,
Perhaps a CD with his favourite tune
Will be on the table, with cards from his kin
And they'll know that he's pleased by his widening grin!
Peter Roebuck
Father's Day Roses
In 1910 Mrs Bruce Dodd,
thought of offering thanks to God,
for all the fathers of her land
so she had a special service planned.
On that great day, each girl and boy,
wore a rose to show their joy.
In 1916, America's President
had bouquets of roses sent,
to fathers far away from home,
from the land's finest gardens grown.
The rose became a symbol of the day
as America lead the way
for other nations to join in,
with their Father's Day offerings.
Now it's a joy that we all share,
showing our fathers that we care.
What if the gifts be large or small,
when there is love behind them all.
Pat Rissen
A Father's Greatest Treasure
I watch you sleeping peacefully there
And hold you in my arms and think
What a joy you are to me
I touch your cheek as soft as silk
Your hair is like spun gold
I hold your little body close
And rock you to and fro
I sing you songs and lullabies
And say you are Daddy's little boy
I see you smile your face alight
As you find new things a joy
I watch you toddle and stop your fall
I want to keep you from all harm
I know you are God's special gift to me
You give me so much pleasure
Of all the things that a father could have
You are the greatest treasure.
Christine Isaac
A Son's Friend
You are the man of silent strength,
The person whom I rely.
Whose words are soft when things go wrong
And tough when my ego gets too high.
You are the man who taught me to fix a puncture,
The man whose oil and tools I constantly borrow
And whose advice, now I am older,
I finally follow.
The list of things that you have done,
Would pass the moon and leave our solar system.
So all I can say, is 'Thank you Dad'.
The best friend, a son could ever had.
A L Barlow
Back Home
Hiding in the front room, I heard his key in the lock
The door was open, and then the work boots wiped on the mat
A belated return, delayed that night until well past seven o'clock,
But the chance was there for overtime so really that was that.
Springing from my domestic lair, I pounced on homecoming Dad,
This ritual evening ambush was our animated greeting,
He knew that all was well if he was pummelled by his lad
And surely missed the days when he received no playful beating.
For years I felt secure with this as part of my routine
And when this sporting clash was stopped I really can't recall,
Not the most gripping contest that the world has ever seen
But still I sense excitement racing with me down the hall.
Steve Woollard
 Why not give
It's A Dad'z Life
or Dedicated
to Dad to your Dad this Father's Day? You can order this book
online and your dad can
enjoy the Fathers Day
poems all year through.
 Send us your
poems about dad for the chance to win your Dad a Whiskey Gift
Set, delivered to your Dad in time for Father's Day. All submitted poems will be considered for a forthcoming Anchor Books anthology.
Send
us Your 'Poems for Dad'
Submission Guidelines:
Up to 2 poems of no more than 30 lines in length each will be considered. The address to send your poem(s) to is: Poems for
Dad 2004, Forward Press Ltd, Remus House, Coltsfoot Drive, Peterborough PE2 9JX
Please remember to write your name, address and daytime telephone number on each piece of work you send.
Alternatively, you can email us your
Fathers Day poems:
inbox@forwardpress.co.uk (Please include your name, postal address and daytime telephone number.)
We will contact the winner on
Thursday 17th June 2004 by telephone/email to arrange delivery of gift.
Please
note: All poems already
submitted for 'Poems for
Dad' will be considered
for the competition.
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