BY MICHAEL S. JOHNSON

Father’s Day is the product, not surprisingly, of a woman’s effort, a daughter raised by a widower in Seattle a hundred years ago, but it took 60 years for the day commemorating fathers to be celebrated nationally.

I have enjoyed the observance of Father’s Day 32 times. And in most of those years, my children have presented me with cards, hand drawn with color crayons in the early years; gifts, many handmade, and a hearty Sunday brunch.

I have accepted all with gratitude, a few tears, some embarrassment for being the center of attention, and some guilt for accepting love and kudos when I know I wasn’t the best father I could have been or my children deserved.

But on each and every Father’s Day, I have also taken a few moments to slip away to someplace close but quiet, away from the hubbub, and reflect on who and what my children have become in spite of me.

It is a truth known to most parents that their children are very special. Ours are. They are good human beings, a little unsteady on their feet, as we all are well into old age. They are well grounded, even though they don’t think so sometimes.  They have good, solid values, even though they are not always sure how to apply them. They have a strong sense of spirituality, even though some don’t cast a shadow over the vestibule of organized religion very often. They have love in their heart, compassion, sensitivity, and a generous, giving nature but they have no idea how much other people appreciate them.

They suffer from bouts of insecurity and doubt. They are sometimes unhappy or unsatisfied in their professional pursuits, but they survive and thrive because they have loads of talent, great imagination, brains, and a solid work ethic. They also have other powers in their lives on which they can draw for strength, especially their family.

Two of the five are married and blessed in their relationships. Partnerships that are sturdy, tender, and loving and so natural it is as though they were simply meant to be. One has given us a grandchild.

This Father’s Day, we could not all be together, with one sibling serving her country in the Army and the other nursing a feverish youngster. But this Father’s Day, like all of the others before them, we were all able to laugh, appreciate family, and declare life is good, even if by Face Time and phone.

We have all faced challenges and overcome them, and we all know there are more to come; but we also know that as Woody Allen once said, most of life is just showing up.

A year from now, on another Father’s Day, we will probably have forgotten or overcome most of the trials and tribulations that life will have thrown our way in the preceding 12 months. We will once again be enjoying just the good memories, happy times and, most importantly, each other. We will once again be reminded that there isn’t as much in life that is as important as we think it is, and that what is important is assembled right there around the dining room table, having brunch.