A scene from To Kill a Mockingbird. This scene always knocks me on my butt.
Mary Badham is the greatest child actor of all time.
public domain image

I thought I would write a brief Father’s day entry before I got busy with the real Father’s day. Today, I’d like to make mention of my favorite fictional father, and likely one of my favorite fictional characters of all time: Atticus Finch.

Atticus is the father in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. I saw the film before I read the novel and that is just fine. Gregory Peck embodies the character of Atticus to perfection. You can read a fuller portrait of Atticus here. What I want to recognize today in this Father’s Day posting, is the qualities of Atticus that I most admire and to which I strive to mimic daily.

1. He is a single father. No explanation needed why I like this. The guy kicks ass.

2. He has a moral center that is not based on religion, dogmatism, or tradition. It is based on the principals of justice, fairness, and common decency. Damn. That is so good I have to say it again. He has a moral center that is not based on religion, dogmatism, or tradition. It is based on the principals of justice, fairness, and common decency. Really, how many people can you actually say that about? That idea is so attractive to me that it actually gets me out of bed in the morning.

3. He talks to his children. He never talks down to them. In fact, his children call him Atticus, not Dad, apparently by his request. Also, when the difficult themes of the story unfold. Atticus tells his children what is happening. He doesn’t need to go into grusome details. He simply tells them the truth so that they can understand it. He never sways from the truth or denies it. If this fact alone doesn’t make you love the man, then nothing will.

4. The man does not compromise what he believes. In the face of ignorance, violence, and various other forms of public retribution, the man stands his ground. Possibly the shortest single positive definition of manhood that there is.

5. He displays generosity and kindness to those in need, and displays tempered courtesy to those who insult him and work to thwart him. The guy never lets himself be dragged into the mud. He simply relies on familiar social curtesies to remove himself from the situation and get back on track to his own ends. Wow. So cool.

I’m going to start a tradition this year of watching To Kill a Mockingbird on father’s day. And I’d like to invite others to do the same. When you need a big dose of positive fathering, I can’t think of better medicine.