Father's Day Special: Courageous

"There's only three (3) men I'm a serve my whole life; it's my Daddy, Marc Jacobs, and Jesus Christ." - Russo.

That's a paraphrase from Lady GaGa's Yoü and I song, a beautiful song to say the least. Lady GaGa, who I'm sure you can only hate or love, adores her 54-year old Dad, Jo Germanotta, even and together with her boundless fame and fortune. She can never hate the person who bought her first piano. Surely her Dad had never missed a recital. Even then, Jo has always been at Lady GaGa's side in good times, and more dependably in bad. And we wonder why Mother Monster is so strong-willed, as a woman and a world-renowned international pop sensation. She was raised by a man with integrity, humility, and patience.

L-R: Natali, Jo, and Stephanie Germanotta

I heard that fatherless children are eleven times more likely than those with fathers to turn to lives of crime. But don't tell that to Harry Potter and Spiderman or they'll flip. Fathers, biological or adoptive, are crucial to a child's formative years. Not only to shoulder his share of parental responsibilities, fathers also serve as the training wheels on our first bikes, our foam fingers on our first little leagues. Because only when they appear strong, a child will be strong. You cannot fake strength. A father's presence - very singular, you noticed - can mean love, confidence, inspiration, security, fidelity, power. Each quality contributes to the intensity of the flame that is your fragile, impressionable soul.

I am one of the lucky ones to have a Dad, alive and able-bodied. Not lucky enough to have Fernando Zobel de Ayala or Donald Trump, but I'm cool. My Dad isn't exactly the super Dad I wish he is. Much less am I the super son he once dreamed of until I came out with an incurable predicament. It took a while and trust I'm still in the seemingly endless process to understand my Dad. I learned to love him because he's the only Dad I've got. The gods were gracious my Dad is a decent man. I can't say a lot about him because our relationship is a broken mirror: we can see each other eye to eye but we're aware of the cracks that scarred us over time. My Dad is an enigma, no less than his son. The apple didn't fall far from the tree.

"My Dad must've done something good to deserve a rewarding life."-Russo.

One of the recurring memories I had with my Dad, and trust my memory can only store memories of value, is the night he awoke me with a Jansport backpack suspiciously in my arms like a bolster pillow. Oh, my Dad can be a prankster sometimes. I couldn't go back to sleep anymore because, at that moment in time, my simple dream became a reality. And I'm glad my Dad was part of it.

I'm sure you have untamed memories with your Dad. Let them out as you watch this Father's Day Special movie recommendation:

From the creators that had my tears inextinguishable (Fireproof, Most Romantic Film of 2008), comes a film of five men who are trying to provide, survive, and revive what is given, forgotten, and stolen from them. Like a gun shot straight to the heart, Courageous is an emotional ride of which fathers are the providers, protectors, and mentors in the family as a man is distinguished for his honor.