"Dad!" - a sacred call

I still remember clearly that autumn afternoon, when the cool breeze was just blowing through the leaves on the porch, the pale yellow sunlight spread thinly on the yard, someone's weak, lisping voice rang out: "Dad... oh!". Just two words, but I felt my heart waver, soften like a piece of paper in water and tears naturally welled up without me realizing it. That feeling was both strange and familiar, as if the whole world was stopping to hear me call Dad for the first time in my life.

People say that being a father is a long journey. For me, it is a miracle, a sacred thing that is hard to describe. Since I found out I had a child, I have become different. I am no longer the person who only knows how to rush into work, jostling among the hustle and bustle of life. I know fear, worry, and wait for each passing day, just to hear a cry, to see a small creature carrying my blood. I got used to sleepless nights, sitting listening to the heartbeat in my wife's womb, as if I were listening to my own heartbeat. Then the moment my child cried out at birth, I could only stand still, tears welling up, trembling as I held that tiny hand, a hand so small that it fit in the palm of my hand, but strong enough to hold on for life.

In the early days of being a father, I was really clumsy. I didn’t know how to change diapers or mix milk properly. When my baby cried, I looked at my wife in a panic, and she just smiled and said: “Dad, do it, you’ll get used to it!”. Yes, I did get used to it. I got used to the smell of milk, the smell of my baby’s skin, fragrant, gentle and clear, and I only needed to take a breath to feel my heart soften, as if washed away all the dust of everyday life. There were nights when my baby had a fever, I carried him back and forth in the room, listening to his wheezing breaths and felt as if someone was squeezing my heart. But as soon as my baby smiled, all the tiredness disappeared, all the hardships became as light as clouds drifting in the sky.

I used to think that happiness was having money, fame, and status in life. But since having a child, happiness has become very simple for me. It is just every afternoon after work, hearing the call “Dad!” from the corner of the yard, then seeing a tiny figure, hair still dripping with sweat, running to hug me. That hug was so warm, so short, but it was enough to make me feel like my life was complete. One time, I was on a business trip far away. Lying in a quiet hotel room at night, missing home, I turned on my phone to listen to the recording of my child practicing speaking. His voice was lisping, immature, but sweet as sugar: “Dad, I love you!”. I laughed, but my heart was choked up. It turns out that no matter how strong a man is, just hearing his child call him a loving word makes him strangely weak.

Now every morning, before I can open my eyes, my child climbs on top of me, grinning: “Dad, wake up!”. I pretend to close my eyes and go back to sleep, but my child pokes my cheek and pulls my hair. That feeling is both tiring and joyful, and it becomes more magical than anything else in the world. No matter how much hustle and bustle there is out there, just hearing my child call “Dad!” makes me forget all my tiredness.

It turns out that happiness is not far away, it lies in the little hand, in the innocent eyes, in the babbling voice of the child every day. Being a father is sometimes tiring, extremely hard, but it is the sweetest tiredness in the world. Because in every moment living with my child, I feel like I am growing up, learning to be gentler, more tolerant. I know that life is long, there will be many changes. My child will grow up, will have his own world , will be less attached to me like now. But just occasionally hearing my child call "Dad!", no matter how hoarse, no matter how far away, over the phone, my heart still feels warm, I feel like I am living in the simplest happiness in the world.

So every time I hear that affectionate call, I smile and think to myself: "In this life, I just need to be called dad, that's enough happiness."

Nguyen Thanh

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/van-hoa/202510/ba-oi-tieng-goi-thieng-lieng-ce60696/