See, my poor dad never had any sons. I personally think it is a little unfortunate. I would have done anything for a brother. When I was a kid I even remember wishing for an older brother as I blew out my candles (I was a kid, I didn't know that obviously would never work out for me).
Growing up I was the one that went fishing with my dad, I was the one that helped him clean the pool, I was the one that helped him mow the lawn. He pushed me to do things that I'm sure "his son" would have done. He let me demolish the closet before he rebuilt it, he showed me how to hang Christmas lights with the staple gun, he even let me help when he was redoing the roof. When I was a kid he let me shift the truck when I sat in the middle of that tiny Toyota. He got us rollerblades so we could play endless hours of hockey outside. He got me blueberry muffins while I waited all three services while he ushered at church.
He introduced me to Queen, made sure I knew who Elvis was and loved to sing crocodile rock. He helped me understand that the louder the music, the better your mood. He made me watch the Godfather and understand its importance and answered my questions about the star wars movies. He took me to my first concert and even brought binoculars so I could see Garth Brookes that much clearer. He got us a wakeboard and made sure he cheered each time I went outside the wake. He took me to get my first pair of track shoes and made sure I had the best shin guards for soccer. He took us camping in Bishop and introduced me to my love for the outdoors.
(Bishop, CA 2008)
(Mud Run 2011)
(Grandpa, Uncle Mike, Me, Dad: My sister's wedding 2011)
He has shown me so many things over the years, mostly because I think he has no son to show these valuable life lessons to, so why let them go to waste. As I grew up, he made sure I knew how to change a tire and even made me do an emergency run through on the truck. He made sure I could drive a stick before I ever got an automatic car. He has shown me several times how to change my oil, what my spark plugs do, where my air filter is, and why it is so so so so important to check my oil (I will never let that one down).
He helped shape me into the women I am today. He didn't care that my hair got messed up with the windows rolled down because God's knows I needed to grow out of that stage. He didn't care that I was scared of being on the ladder because he knew I needed to conquer small fears. He didn't care that I hated driving that stick shift car because he knew it would come in handy. He didn't care that I hated doing yard work and raking straight lines in the sand because… well I still don't know why I had to do that but…
He helped me to have a broad knowledge of things that will help keep me safe later in life. He pushed me to overcome small things so I can have confidence facing even bigger trials. He taught me how to always be prepared, how important it is to be organized and how to do things on my own in case AAA couldn't come to my rescue. He taught me the importance of learning how to do things ourselves because how hard can retiling the bathroom be when you've already built a porch. He has shown me how to fix things and how epoxy and gorilla glue work wonders. He gave me the confidence to figure things out on my own.
In many ways I am just like my dad. I am my father's daughter, but I am also my fathers son, and I'm okay with all I have learned through it.
HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!!!!
P.S. Dad, when I get back you still need to teach me how to drive the Packard.
