The King of Showing Up

This fellow may be the King of Hearts, but he looks less like royalty and more like a man wondering who touched the thermostat.

The crown leans. The antlers appear to have been borrowed from a very cooperative tree. His royal robes are basically sensible pants and a dependable sweater. Still, there he stands. A little worn around the edges. Calm. Present. Ready to carry something heavy without being asked.

That may be the quiet trick of fatherhood. You rarely feel like a king while doing it. You are driving, fixing, worrying, paying, listening and pretending you know why the Wi-Fi stopped working. Then one day, someone looks back and realizes you were holding the whole kingdom together.

A fun bit of card history: court cards became “double-headed” during the 1800s so players wouldn’t need to turn them upright and accidentally reveal their hand. This king breaks that symmetry. He is imperfect, exposed and completely himself.

Which feels right today.

Here’s to the fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers, mentors and steady men who keep showing up. Crooked crowns and all.

Happy Father’s Day.