• Regularly taking the family to Padre Island, the most beautiful beach I've ever seen
• Teaching me to swim
• Taking me on a fishing trip and protecting me when the outboard broke down and we had to be rescued
• Driving me to the skating rink every Wednesday evening for three summers
• Teaching me a couple of words in Dutch (though, sorry, I've forgotten them now)
• Very patiently teaching me to ride my bike without training wheels
• Giving me driving lessons in his old push-button Dodge
• Letting me help him plant a garden
• Explaining to me the function of every tool in his meticulously-kept toolbox
• Telling me, on the evening of my first junior high school dance, that I looked "beautiful"
• Allowing me to live with him and his new wife when my mother and her new husband asked me to move out
• Never, ever, yelling at me. And I know I gave him plenty of cause.
My dad never had a lot to say to me. I don't remember a single in-depth conversation with him, but I believe he did the best he could to be a loving father as he saw it. He didn't have a good role model. His own father, after bringing the family of eight over from Holland, seemed to regard his three boys as potential farm hands and resisted any efforts to make anything else of themselves. He never saw his Dutch grandparents, numerous aunts and uncles again after the age of six, so there were no other adult men to guide him. Under the circumstances, I think he did a pretty good job.
Happy Father's Day, Daddy.
7 comments:
We owe those Dads of ours a lot. I know I do.
what sweet memories. i too remember my dad taking me to the beach, the zoo and the circus. he was always so proud of me. it`s hard to believe he`s been gone 10 years.
did you get my e-mail from nagoya? sometimes when i send out mass e-mails i manage to miss a person or 2. i`ll e-mail you later.
hope all is well. how is chiquito doing? i hope you get tokeep him.
teresa
Dad's play a HUGE role in th elife of a girl. I am glad you had a good expereince. My first Dad was not so good. I got a real Daddy when I was 30 years old. I cannot imagine life without him now.
That photo of him holding the board on the log so you two could seesaw is just so great!
Hi Bliss, i've been looking for your phone number but I can't find it. We found an injured puppy and we are trying to help him but don't know what to do or where to go. I've beening reading about you helping at the san carlos canine center and though you might know what we should do.
Ale (your mexican friend from guaymas)
Steve - Well, he wasn't perfect, but I know he did his best.
Teresa - Mine's been gone 40+ years. I would have loved to show him the real Mexico. All he ever saw was Laredo. Chiquito is healing, and looks a lot better.
C&K - Glad you found one, however late it happened.
Nice.
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