As we wind down this Father's Day, I wanted to just make a post honoring the dads! First off, Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there, the grandpas, uncles, step-dads, brothers, single dads, and the moms who have to play both roles!
This post may get a little emotional and sappy at times, but this has been weighing on my heart this year, and even more so today.
I was six months old when my parents got married. Logically, I can't even see why they did but at that age, it wasn't like I could do anything about it! My childhood was a great one. I knew that I could always count on my mom to help me, teach me, and most importantly, love me. Yes, I said my mom! Growing up, and the older I got, the more I realized how much she played both parenting roles in our family, even though my dad was "around." My mother was the one who helped me with my homework and worked her butt off to put me through school, who made my boo-boos all better, and who showed me unconditional love and support in everything I did.
Fast forward to early 2000, when I was 13. My mother's co-worker called to inform her that my dad had been spotted with another woman multiple times. Right there showed me what kind of man he was, breaking wedding vows...and the Ten Commandments! Needless to say, my mother kicked him out and filed for divorce. Just a few weeks later, my aunt gave my mom the phone number of her childhood sweetheart (who she had only seen once since the age of 15). As a teenager, I was hurt at first. I mean, that was my "dad", regardless of what he had done but once she started talking to her childhood sweetheart, I could see how happy she had become in just a matter of days.
Fast forward to the spring of 2000, the man who I now call my dad, stepped in and became what a father should be. I was in the 7th grade at the time that him and my mother rekindled their romance. He was there for the awards days, the 8th grade graduation, every big event I had in high school, prom, and high school graduation. He was the one who helped me with school projects when I needed something big to be done (even that Geometry project about the barn!)
He is the man who took me to job interviews, who was there for me through every triumph and tragedy I've faced in the last 14 years. He's the man who STILL helps me with things around my house, who STILL makes sure I have what I need when times are hard, and even after all these years, is still loving my mother, and making her the happiest I've ever seen. There is nothing greater than that.
So, with that being said, today, honor the men in your life who have made all the difference, whether that be a stepdad, grandfather, or even a friends dad. My "dad" may still be a part of my life, but by no means has he ever shown me what a true father should be. Money can't buy love. Love has to be proven through actions.
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