Happy Fathers Day!

Happy Fathers Day!
On Father’s Day, I sit back and think about the fathers in my life. I am lucky, I have had more than my share. I always laugh when I tell people I have had three of them!

There is the father who gave me my DNA, but was never an active part of my life. Would I recognize him if I met him on the street someday because of that connection? Not sure, but I am still grateful for him! Thanks Dad!

There is the father that wanted a child so much he adopted me from another set of parents, took the risk of loving me without knowing how I would turn out, whether I was someone he would even want to know or would consider loving. This father died when I was 2 years old. I recognize him in my dreams, a presence in my life I see only in photographs.

There is the father who married my mother, and I came along as a part of the package. What a leap of faith! This father I grew up with. This is the father that grew old and took a hold of my heart in real time, and who I mourned when he left his body.

All of them hold a special place on my heart, although I really only knew one. However, others stand in the space that is left.
Uncles, brothers, friends, husbands, sons… each one shows support and love in so many different ways!

I have an Uncle who has recently taken up residence in my heart space. He is 88 now, a cantankerous bachelor, who has never had children of his own. But as he gets older, he has begun to soften, as most of us do. I see the things he has kept in his house, and I am amazed. I see my baby pictures, and letters I wrote to him when I was a child. I see notes between my mother and him when my father died, taking time off to be with us, to support his sister. I see the stuffed dog he gave me when I was 4 years old. Now, I see the pride in his eyes when he talks about me, and the business I have built. I am his daughter, as much as I am my Father’s daughter. I feel blessed to reconnect.

I see my husband, nurturing his adult children through thick and thin, offering his love, his time and his arms, to hug them, to hold his grandchildren, to fly kites, to change diapers, to take them on walks and find frogs. He never says no!

I see my sons and son in law, persevering through hard labors, sleepless nights, first steps, and first words. I see them guiding their children and nieces and nephews through this very different world we live in with strength and good humor.

I see a friend of mine, surrogate father to his best friend’s children who have lost their dad. He is there for advice, to travel with them, to bolster them when they are sad or lost, to celebrate their victories, to love them. He keeps the memory of their father alive, and fills the void they feel.

I see my friends in non-traditional marriages, both mother and father. I see the joy on their faces, holding their babies.

I see fathers bringing their sons and daughters to yoga, helping them find the peace they themselves have found, to find common ground.

I see a village, strong, loving, kind and generous that guides us and shapes us as we grow.

Thank you to all of you – fathers, uncles, brothers, husbands, friends, sons.

We are blessed to have you be a part of our lives.

Happy Father’s Day to all of you!