|
͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
|
|
|
Next Sunday is Father's Day, a holiday honoring not just dads but everyone who has stepped into that role in our lives. It falls during
Men's Mental Health Awareness Month, a fitting overlap that highlights how strength and struggle often exist closer together than many people realize.
The numbers tell a sobering story: Men are significantly less likely than women to seek help for mental health issues like loneliness or depression, and only about 40% of men
with a mental illness receive treatment, compared with more than half of women.
It’s not that men face fewer internal challenges. It’s that many have become accustomed to carrying them alone. For generations, they were taught to handle problems on their own. That mindset can be a source of strength, but it can also make it harder to ask for help.
Father's Day gives us an opening to change that. Yes, it's a chance to show love and appreciation for everything the fathers in our lives do. But it's also an invitation to connect more deeply and ask the simplest of questions: How are you doing?
|
|
Wired to go it alone
The reluctance to seek help runs deep. Anthropologists have said that in our hunting-and-gathering days, keeping fears and feelings to yourself was a practical advantage. After all, sharing your worries didn't help you take down a mammoth.
Some of that ancient wiring, it seems, stuck around. I certainly saw it as a kid in Queens, New York.
|
|
When I was growing up, many of the fathers in the neighborhood looked like they had stepped out of central casting. They were policemen, firefighters, and tradesmen who had grown up during the Depression and come of age in time for World War II.
“Expressive” wasn't a word you'd use to describe them. Feelings rarely came up. Conversations in garages, around backyard grills, and at the local bar rarely strayed from work, cars, and sports.
A lot has changed since then. Today's dads are more willing to talk about how they feel. But the statistics suggest it still doesn't come naturally. Even now, many of us find it easier to discuss work or the news than whatever is actually weighing on us.
|
|
Starting a conversation
The quietest men are often the least likely to start these conversations themselves. That means the people closest to them may need to be the ones to break the ice — and Father's Day is a natural moment to try.
After all, families are already gathering, or calls are being made. Often, all it takes to connect more deeply is a little curiosity and a willingness to linger on a question a bit longer than usual.
|
|
If you want to move past the surface this weekend, here are a few gentle ways in:
-
Acknowledge the awkwardness: There is nothing wrong with calling it out directly. Saying something like, “I know we don't usually talk about this stuff,” can immediately take the pressure off both of you.
-
Lean into humor: If a heavy, sincere approach feels too forced, use the language your family already speaks. Teasing, running jokes, and shared laughs can open doors just as effectively as a heartfelt admission.
-
Ask for advice: Fathers naturally light up when asked for guidance, even when we think we’ve outgrown the need for it. Shift the focus to their own experiences by asking what they were like at your age, what used to worry them, or what they might have done differently.
Sometimes, a single thoughtful question can open doors that have been closed for years.
|
|
The moment I almost missed
My father was a painting contractor, and he fit the mold of dads from his generation perfectly. He wasn’t the touchy-feely type, but he would do absolutely anything for his family, including slipping a few extra dollars into your pocket before a big date.
Near the end of his life, though, he turned the tables on me.
One afternoon, he watched me say goodbye to my brother, turned to me, and asked, “Why did you stop kissing me?”
I froze. “I didn't think you'd want me to,” I admitted. “I thought that was just something kids did.”
I realized right then that I had been the one making assumptions and letting them stand for years. But by asking that one question, my dad flipped the script. He showed me that even the quietest men from that generation sometimes want to break the silence, too.
That single moment changed the trajectory of our relationship for the time we had left. It was a reminder of how often we hold back — not because we don't care, but because we're not sure how our gestures will land.
This Father's Day, I hope all dads and the people who love them take a similar chance and push past their comfort zones. I promise it's a risk won’t regret.
All the best,
|
|
In this week’s episode of Power & Impact, I sat down with
Bill Villanova, president of the iconic Frank E. Campbell funeral home
in New York City. After more than 25 years in funeral service, Bill has guided families through some of life’s most difficult moments while helping preserve traditions that have
endured for generations.
Our conversation explored how those rituals are adapting to a changing world. Technology now allows services to reach loved ones across continents, but the purpose remains the same: creating a space where people can come together to honor a life. If anything, the disruptions of the pandemic reinforced how deeply people need those moments of connection.
We also discussed a subject many of us tend to put off indefinitely: planning for the end of life. We make plans for our careers, finances, and families, yet often avoid conversations about our own wishes, leaving loved ones to make difficult decisions without guidance.
Bill has seen how powerful those conversations can be. Far from being morbid, they can provide clarity, reduce uncertainty, and help ensure that our wishes reflect what matters most to us. In that sense, preparing for the inevitable is less about death than about giving a final gift to the people we leave behind.
|
|
50 Years In: Finding a first love
As 1-800-Flowers.com marks its 50th anniversary, I’ve been thinking less about milestones and more about the moments that have helped shape our story. This week, I’m reminded of one involving a customer searching for his first love.
Many years ago, a World War II veteran reached out with an unusual request. Before leaving for the war, he had fallen for a young woman in his hometown. Life took them in different directions. They married other people, raised families, and built lives of their own.
Decades later, after losing his wife, he called us with a question: Could we help him find her?
A customer service supervisor took up the challenge, and it wasn’t easy. This was long before records were digitized and stored in searchable databases. But with persistence and the tools available at the time, the team eventually tracked her down.
The veteran sent her a pink corsage, a duplicate of the one she had worn to their high school prom so many years ago. The note read: “If you're the Mary Anne I left in '41, I'd sure like to get caught up with you.”
The two reconnected, and before long, they were planning a wedding.
We were honored to provide the flowers.
Our best days are the ones when we're invited into life's biggest moments. Sometimes that's a wedding planned for a year. Sometimes it's a love story that took half a century to find its way back. Either way, it's a reminder of why we do what we do.
|
|
Building for people you'll never meet
Earlier this month, I had the privilege of speaking at NYU Langone Hospital — Long Island’s 130th anniversary celebration, a milestone that prompted me to reflect on the people who helped build this remarkable institution.
When Nassau Hospital first opened its doors in 1896, its founders couldn’t possibly have imagined today's medical breakthroughs or the hundreds of thousands of patients who would be served over the decades to come. Yet they made investments that would benefit future generations they would never meet.
As a member of NYU Langone’s Board of Overseers, I've come to appreciate that every chapter in its history was shaped by people who thought beyond themselves. Community leaders, donors, physicians, nurses, and staff made decisions because they believed Long Island deserved access to the best possible care.
Their efforts created opportunities and outcomes that continue to improve lives more than a century later.
It’s a reminder that many of the most meaningful things we do in life work the same way. We plant trees whose shade we'll never sit under. We create rituals our grandchildren may one day carry forward. We build businesses and communities that can serve people long after we're gone.
In a world fixated on immediate results, there's something worth holding onto: lasting impact isn’t measured only by what we accomplish today, but by what we make possible for tomorrow.
|
|
What's on your mind?
For more than six years and hundreds of Sundays, the Celebrations Pulse letter has explored the moments, rituals, relationships, and ideas that help shape our lives. Along the way, many of the best topics have come not from me, but from you.
As we look ahead to future editions, I'd love to hear from you. Is there a celebration, life transition, family tradition, challenge, or question you'd like me to explore? Is there someone in your community whose story deserves to be told? Or perhaps there's a topic you've been thinking about that deserves more attention.
Simply click the button below and share your idea. While I can't cover every suggestion, my team and I read them all, and many have inspired some of our best letters.
|
|
The lessons we learned from dad
Father's Day is a chance to reflect on the men who helped shape us. As we prepare to celebrate next week, I'd love to hear about the Amazing Dads who have made a difference in your life and the lesson, memory, or tradition they passed along that continues to inspire you today.
I'll share a selection of your stories in an upcoming edition of the Celebrations Pulse. As a thank-you, five submissions selected at random will receive a surprise from the 1-800-Flowers.com family of brands.
|
|
|
Related articles that caught my eye
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Written by our Founder and Chairman, our Celebrations Pulse letters aim to engage with our community. From sharing stories to welcoming your ideas, we want to help you to express, connect, and celebrate the important people in your life.
|
|
|
|
|
