Father’s Day

At work, during our weekly staff meeting, we always have a question of the day.

Yesterday, in honor of the just passed Father’s Day weekend, the question was “recall a special memory with your Dad”.

For me, this was no easy task. That’s because there are so many to pick from!

 

I have countless special memories with my Dad.

 

But as we went around the conference table at work, I was surprised and saddened to hear so many of my colleagues say that their Dads weren’t around. In fact, most struggled to think of something to share.

I always knew I was lucky because I have such an amazing dad, but this was a strong reminder of how truly special he is.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted my dad’s approval. I worked hard to make him proud. I never wanted him to be upset with me or to disappoint him.

And I was lucky, I really can’t remember my Dad ever yelling at me. When I upset him I’d get “the look” or maybe the silent treatment for a while, but I can’t recall him raising his voice.

But I do recall the countless good memories.

When I was little, every weekend during the summer, he’d take me to the local pool to go swimming.

 

It was our time, and I loved it.

 

 

Every night we ate dinner as a family and I loved hearing about my Dad’s day. He’d even take me to work on the occasional weekend when he had to work and I’d pretend I was “heading into the office,” too.

He taught me to have a strong work ethic, the importance of being loyal, and to never complain. All of these things are part of my core beliefs today.

As I got older and started high school, my Dad retired and we got to spend even more time together.

I loved coming home from school and hanging out with him. We’d have crackers and cheese at 5 o’clock and watch the evening news together. During the summers, we’d go to the gym together. And when I had a summer job, he always drove me to work.

 

When it was time to look at colleges, he took me to any school I wanted to see.

 

And I can still remember the exact spot where we were standing on the campus of Santa Clara University during a college tour, when he said that if I wanted to go to college there that he and my mom would make it work.

I also remember the exact place where we were standing on that same campus later that fall when he, my mom, and sister said goodbye and drove away, shortly after moving me into the dorms.

I was so homesick… and they had only been gone a minute! But knowing how proud they were of me gave me the courage to stay and work hard to get my degree.

 

And for all those happy memories, I have to say the ones I’ve had with my Dad over the past few years have been the best.

 

I love when he is in a good a mood and really talkative. I love hearing his insights and wonderful advice. I’m touched and honored when he asks for my opinion on how to handle something.

We talk about sports and current events, like we always have. But more often than not, now we talk about life. How to handle situations, what we learned from different experiences, and how blessed we are.

I’m not a perfect daughter. I don’t call enough. I tease him sometimes when I shouldn’t.

But I can say with 100% certainty that I never take my Dad for granted and I know how lucky I am. My Dad loves me unconditionally and he shows it.

And that is about as good as it gets.