Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day! Today I celebrate my father! Since I am still working out some of my "blogging issues" on my new computer the flow of this post isn't exactly what I had intended. As a result...I am being forced into a new format (which is a really good lesson for someone like me) and will begin with today's special guest blogger.

(Please turn up your volume! This is my song for MY dad!)

Dear David,

This Father’s Day seems especially tender because we have just seen baby Gianna be born and it brought back a flood of memories for both of us. I can remember, so vividly, finding out when we were told we were going to have a baby, and your Tio Noe happened to come by our house on Nyssa and you and he toasted with a glass of an amber looking liquor that for me looked like a river of dreams and hopes . I just remember that my heart felt so big that day it wanted to burst so I can only imagine how you felt, because I have watched you be the most loving and committed Dad from that very moment to this very day. I see you pray your finger Rosary for her daily and I feel such a joy and comfort because I know that you are asking the Lord for the right things for our Patty.

It was so much easier when she was little and she fit in your hand and she took her naps on your chest while you watched TV, and I was off to Ballet Class with Diana and Maritza. Life was so simple, we were just there for Patty and so was everybody else. It seemed like the family was just waiting for her.

You were always there for every part of her growing up. You helped me with everything. There was a calm about you that I did not have. I wanted everything to be perfect and you were ok with a little dirt and some little, crooked pigtails. You kept me grounded. Thank God for you because if not, I probably would have really made her Chinese (just a joke). I knew I could go away to my conventions because you were there to brush her teeth, make her pigtails, her bun for dancing...you did it all. But most of all you loved doing it. You never dreaded it or complained. It was an honor for you. Being Patty’s Dad has been an honor for you. You have shown me how a Dad respects his Daughter. I listen to your conversations even when you have had to put your foot down with her, it is always with respect. How lucky she is to have you and you to have her. She is truly a wonderful daughter.

So it is fitting when Father’s Day comes around that we think of all that you do for your Daughter, all the little things, take care of her cats, make sure her insurance does not run out, that her Triple A is always renewed, her license plates are current, her house is ready for winter, that her AC gets checked, and that she always has flowers on Valentine's Day. All those little things are what a girl needs from her Dad. How lucky she is! I love to see how carefully at Christmas you pick out her books, and how you wonder whether she will like this bracelete or not and you finally ask for my opinion (you’re so funny). We used to do that together when she was little. Only I was the one asking you if you thought she would like that dancing doll or would she like just one more bald cabbage patch doll. You were such a trooper with all those dolls.

There has not been a day when I can remember that this child has not been on your mind and in your heart and soul. There is no bigger gift to a daughter than that.

I love you for that my dear husband,

Roseanna

Happy Father's Day, Dad! One day of the year is not nearly enough to celebrate you. YOU, my father, are the absolute incarnation of what a father "should be!" You have loved me....since before I was born....through to this very day with the most unselfish type of love anyone can experience. As far back as I can remember you and mom shared responsibilities....even when you were away....I had a sense that parenting was a 50-50 deal with you two. I remember that while mom was getting ready in the mornings you were busy packing my lunch (with that insane precision you apply to EVERYTHING you do) and making my breakfast. Peanut butter and jelly with the crusts cut off, perfectly even sized celery, a bag of chips (the assorted variety) and a juice box! Breakfast was usually a taco of some sort....or papas con huevo made with the frozen french fries (excellent idea!). You and I practiced spelling words and we also sat down to read small picture books from the "I Can Read" Series. (Remember Frog and Toad?)

There were a lot of times when you were gone. But you called us every day and wrote me so many sweet letters....again in your perfect, precise handwriting. One summer I was down with the Chicken Pox...but had expressed some interest in baseball (yes....all you people out there I said baseball....) and you sent me the sweetest plastic bat and ball so mom and I could play in the backyard. That summer you surprised us and came home a week early. I hadn't seen you in months! Mom told me we were going to the airport to pick up a box of your belongings you had sent in advance of your return. I remember waiting for the box...but watching the passengers de-plane anyhow. There you were....one of the passengers. That was the first time in my life I cried "tears of happiness." I remember thinking, "Why am I crying? This is a happy moment. I don't understand!" I didn't know that one could be overcome with emotion and tears can then find a way of just pouring out of your eyes. You, Dad, were my first reason to cry out of sheer happiness. What a pure and sweet emotion!

Dad, you are the most solid person I know. You have a truly kind heart....especially where mom and I are concerned. You adhere to a strict code of Christian values, you are the hardest working man I know, you have so much integrity, you love your friends as if they were all brothers, and you love your family despite their foibles. You were raised by a wonderful man, as well. I know grandpa was tough...but he was good, Dad. He was good! I see that very same strength in you (with a lot more emotion...thank goodness!). You are a man of courage and conviction. Yes, you have been knocked down. As a family we have been knocked down....but you NEVER stayed down. You have shown me how to get back up on your feet, move forward in Christ and make things happen. You have cared for mom and I in such a tender way. She and I have been blessed to have you as the leader of this family.

I have seen some tough times recently. These situations have probably challenged you greatly, as well. I can not imagine that some of what I have experienced has not made your blood boil and want to knock people's heads off! But you never even show me that you are shaken! You offer me calm, cool advice and show me how to handle myself with the utmost amount of grace and dignity in the face of adversity. And you often allow me to see things in a way I normally would not have even considered. You are a steady, calming force in my life. Mom and I aren't like that naturally....it isn't a part of our fabric. You keep us both grounded. Most likely...it is adaptive for you to keep us calm...if not, we simply would have driven you to the brink of insanity by now!

As I have said before God gave me to the most amazing set of parents. He gave ME to YOU for this lifetime. And you embody the love He shows all His children. I love you Dad....so, so, so much.

On this Father's Day I would like to celebrate the husbands of my dear friends who are sweet, new fathers and who I have the unique privilege of now knowing as "dads!" Happy Father's Day Ryan, Eric, Nick (of Nisha and Jordy), Nick (of baby Nicholas Joaquin), Roger, Greg, Vincent! You are all so amazing and I see a lot of the qualities of my father in each of you. Thank you for loving my friends and loving your children the way you do! And to my friends Johnny and Jeff! Enjoy this special day!