The United States is one of the few countries in the world that has an official day on which fathers are honored by their children. On the third Sunday in June， fathers all across the United States are given presents， treated to dinner or otherwise made to feel special.
Mrs. John B. Dodd， of Washington， first proposed① the idea of a “father’s day” in 1909. Mrs. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father William， whose 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. It was after Mrs. Dodd became an adult that she realized the strength and selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent.
The first Father’s Day was observed on June 19， 1910 in Washington. And it was in 1966 that President Lyndon Johnson officially declared the 3rd Sunday of June as Father’s Day.
On that day， children made special desserts for their father or visited their fathers if they lived apart. When children can’t visit their fathers or take them out to dinner， they send a greeting card. Traditionally， fathers prefer greeting cards that are not too sentimental②. Most greeting cards are whimsical③ so fathers laugh when they open them. Some give heartfelt thanks for being there whenever the child needed Dad.
Father’s Day has become a day to not only honor your father， but all men who act as a father figure. Stepfathers， uncles， grandfathers， and adult male friends are all honored on Father’s Day.
① proposev. 提议，建议
② sentimentaladj. 感伤的，多情的
③ whimsicaladj. 怪诞的，古怪的
父亲节的由来
美国是少数几个将父亲节作为法定节日的国家之一。在6月的第三个星期天，全美国的父亲都将收到礼物、被邀请就餐或以其他一些方式有一种特别的感受。
华盛顿州的约翰·布鲁斯·多德夫人在1909年首先提出了设立父亲节的提议。多德夫人希望有一个特殊的日子来向她的父亲——威廉·斯玛特表示敬意。他的妻子在生他们第六个孩子时因难产而死。斯玛特先生在华盛顿州东部乡下的农场里独自养大了6个孩子。多德太太成人后她才意识到她的父亲一个人养大孩子所表现的力量和无私。
1910年的6月19日人们在华盛顿庆祝了第一个父亲节。林登·约翰逊总统最终于1966年宣布每年6月的第三个星期天为父亲节。
在父亲节这一天，孩子们会为父亲做特别的甜点，如果和父亲不住在一起则会邀请父亲到家中来。如果无法邀请父亲到家或到外面就餐，他们会寄上一张贺卡。通常，父亲会更喜欢不太感伤的贺卡。大部分贺卡都很古怪，这样当父亲打开的时便会大笑。一些贺卡也会送上一些衷心的感激之辞，感谢父亲在需要之时一如既往的守护。
现在，父亲节已经成为向父亲及所有扮演父亲角色的人表达敬意的节日。继父、伯父、祖父，所有成年男性都将在父亲节受到尊敬。