PAPA CAN YOU HEAR ME???
i've been busy... so my father's day tribute is coming a little late... but knowing my dad, he'll forgive me! (dad i promise i started writing this BEFORE our conversation tonight!)
who would you become if your mother died when you were 4 and your father ran away from home when you were 7 never to be heard from again? oh and don't forget that you were then raised dirt-poor by your grandmother and abusive step-grandfather.
i'll tell you who my dad became:
he joined the marines and because he worked so hard he retired as a Master-Gunnery Sargent, the highest title an enlisted man can achieve. he met my mom, courted her and asked her to be his wife. 3 kids and 10 years later he continued to thirst for truth in a church that made sense to him. he hounded his commanding officer to tell him more about the mormon church and after subscribing to all of the principals of the gospel- he joined (along with the rest of my family) the church of jesus christ of latter day saints- and never looked back.
in 1979 he retired from the marines and moved the family to UT so he could go to college. after nearly 7 years of going to school, working 3 jobs and being the father of now 8 kids he graduated with honors from brigham young university. he then worked hard at his job in the information systems department for our church. he's been the most amazing leader in a family that has dealt with several physical and mental disabilities- he's used his priesthood to bless and care for each one of his children. he's been the bishop of a young ward and has served faithfully in each calling he's ever been assigned to.
after nearly 20 years of employment at the church headquarters he retired! not one to sit still, he and my mom then signed up to serve a mission for our church- something that he'd always wanted to do. after a faithful mission to nauvoo he took my mom down to saint george, ut and started a non-profit theater troupe in his retirement community where he enjoys doing what he's always wanted to do... be an actor!
AND THAT's JUST THE NUTSHELL VERSION!
my favorite dad-isms
+ my dad (and mom) had the best garden! he even forced us to watch the most boring "how to garden" videos for family home evening so that we could all learn how to tend and take care of our vegetables. now that i am older i can appreciate his willingness to learn to do it the right way. and i must say- we had THE BEST garden in all of so jo and for the record there is nothing better than a fresh salad straight from your own backyard! both of my parents loved to be outside working hard on their flowers and trees... we always had the most beautiful yard in all the neighborhood!
+ i got my sweet tooth from my dad! dad's favorite thing was to sit down to a movie or sports on tv with plenty of snacks and beverage to consume! general conference in my home was equivalent to most people's super bowl sunday- chips, popcorn, nuts, soda-- the works! we as kids also delighted in convincing our dad that he should stop at dairy queen (his favorite ice cream place) on the way home from any one of the many outings. we would start by saying things like "oh, i could really go for a buster bar right now" and then someone else would chime in "oh yeah, that sounds really really good" then we would hold our breath as the dairy queen approached to see if dad had been 'conned' into stopping to get ice cream. without a doubt it would always work and we would burst into shouts of joy that we had tricked him once again... or did he just let us think we were convincing him?
+ my dad loves to know that his kids are happy and taken care of. he likes to be able to give his kids anything in the world, it's his way of showing love and it's always made him sad when he couldn't afford it. a few weeks ago i went down to visit my parents. money for me has been really tight lately and boy did i feel like a million dollars the way my parents took care of me! well one of the days my mom and i went shopping and by chance i tried on a dress that we both agreed was AWESOME. but, it was pretty expensive and so reluctantly i put it back on the rack. that afternoon my mom and i both were lamenting the loss of the perfect dress and i suppose we mentioned it one too many times because after dinner that night my dad drove us back to the store, stopped in front and told my mom to go buy it for me "or else [he] would never hear the end of it!"
+ my dad loves to know that his kids are happy and taken care of. he likes to be able to give his kids anything in the world, it's his way of showing love and it's always made him sad when he couldn't afford it. a few weeks ago i went down to visit my parents. money for me has been really tight lately and boy did i feel like a million dollars the way my parents took care of me! well one of the days my mom and i went shopping and by chance i tried on a dress that we both agreed was AWESOME. but, it was pretty expensive and so reluctantly i put it back on the rack. that afternoon my mom and i both were lamenting the loss of the perfect dress and i suppose we mentioned it one too many times because after dinner that night my dad drove us back to the store, stopped in front and told my mom to go buy it for me "or else [he] would never hear the end of it!"
+ by the way he has treated my mom, my dad has shown me how i should be treated as a woman. his respect for her, his willingness to help in any way, his support of her own dreams. this man knows how to value women. likewise, he taught me to have a voice, how to be an independent woman with an opinion he may not always agree with, but one he certainly is willing to listen to.
i love you daddy!
