For my Daddy...

Dear Daddy,

    I'm thankful to have the opportunity to wish you another Father's Day, and I will when I see you on Sunday.... but I don't think one day out of the year could ever be enough to express my love and gratitude for you. Of course I appreciate all you've done for me, but I also appreciate now more than ever all the many qualities about you that make you special.

    Even though you had a pretty tough life growing up and your earliest memories were not of a loving and peaceful home, you were determined to make things different for me and Tim. You and Mother always made sure ours was a happy home where God was first and music was a big part of our lives. You took the time to encourage us and tell us we could do anything we set our mind to do.... and thanks to you to I still feel like I can tackle any obstacle because you told me "can't never could do anything."

    Not many girls my age were fortunate enough to have a father who taught them how to change the oil in her car, sharpen a knife, and use a level and a hammer.... but these were things you thought were important enough for me to learn because you said "I might not always be around to show you how." I also remember you saying "Hard work never killed anybody, but laying around on the couch all day will"- although as a 10 year-old girl toting buckets of rocks out of the garden for you, that couch seemed mighty inviting at the time. But I understand now what you meant and I'm thankful for the work ethic those words instilled in me.

     I'm also thankful you shared your love of animals with me... it's true that Mother loved animals too, although she was not very fond of the goats, especially after one got loose and jumped on the trunk of her new car. But you were the one who taught me that every living thing has value, and should be treated as such. You've spent so much time down through the years teaching me everything you know about chickens and honeybees.... and oh, how I've loved every minute of it- because the bees not only give us glorious honey, but also pollinate our gardens and fruit trees, not to mention how downright fascinating they are... and chickens? I can't count how many times I heard you say "to us it's just an egg; but to a hen, it's a full day's work." That's one saying I'll always remember and the reason I feel like crying when I accidentally break an egg...

     Thank you for being my protector... like the time a boy who I did not want to have anything to do with wouldn't leave me alone (today it's called "stalking") and you went and found him and had a "talk" with him.... this boy was well over 6 feet tall, and you, all of 5 feet 7.... but after that, he never bothered me anymore. *grin*
Of course, I know how scary your stern little talks could be, too- you gave me more than one or two growing up.

    Thanks for showing me what true love was as you cared for Mother while she was sick; I know some days you must be so lonely without her..... Tim and I miss her too but I can't imagine how you must feel with your companion of almost 50 years no longer by your side.

     Most of all, Daddy- thanks for not trying to be perfect; or always expecting perfection from me only to be disappointed when I'm not, but being instead the perfect example of what a Father should be. Happy Father's Day.... I know I don't say it enough, but I'm proud that you're my father.
Love,
Your Daughter