Happy Father's Day

I've chosen to write a father's day greeting on our blog today because I know Dad always checks it when he's at work. I know we don't have any new pictures up - sorry folks - but, if I get it up in time, he will at least have something new to read.

I always have a hard time deciding what to do for Dad for Father's day & more often than not, I'm late getting it out anyway. I hope he doensn't take that as a sign that I appreciate him any less - it's more of a general commentary on my organizational skills. Anyway, this year was no different. What do you get the man who has everything? I don't really know that father's day is about giving per say, but more about showing dad what he has given you - for me, that could take a while.......

When I was a kid, I remember riding in the car with dad. I don't remember where we were going, or where we had been, or where my mom & dan were - I just remember being in the car with dad. He always had the radio on WAKY - they wacky oldies station in Louisville, and it was there that I committed to memory a lot of the songs that were WAY before my time, but enjoyable nonetheless. I specifically remember two particular instances: One night we were driving toward home & the song "Horse with No name" came on. Imagine dad trying to explain THAT one to an 8 yr old. I remember another night, we did't even have the radio on. We were driving back from the farm & dad and I were singing. Now, my father didn't have the best singing voice, but it was a lot better than he ever let on. He taught me the song "Old Mill Stream", and we sang away the trip home.

Dad liked to spend time in the shop. I always like to think that if I ever had to build a cabinet, I could figure out how to do it simply from my memories of watching dad measure, saw, glue, nail & sand a piece of furniture he was working on for mom. As crafty as he is in the shop, he taught me even more in the kitchen. I never had an Easy Bake Oven - I didn't need one. I had a grown up kitchen & lots of cookbooks & dad had instilled in me the way to do things right. You can't teach the feel of a ball of bread dough, or the right way to knead a ton of fruit into hutzlebrot simply by reading a cookbook. Dad spent time with me, showing me the chemistry of the kitchen , and sharing parts of our family's heritage. I remember Dad telling me that yeast is made up of tiny little animals - like in the circus - and when they get warm and eat some sugar, they start to grow and grow. To this day, I can't look at proofing yeast without thinking of elephants.

From doing a tag team rendition of Wicked John, to simultaneously raising an eyebrow, I have always felt a close connection with my dad, and as I grow in life & wisdom, I continue to gain a greater appreciation for the many lessons he has taught me. It means so much to me when Dad says he is proud of the way Chris interacts with our son. I can imagine that feeling is akin to how the understudy felt when he received a compliment from Michaelangelo.

So, thanks Dad. I love you. I miss you. And, as always, I look forward to the next time we get to share our time together.

Love,
Jen