My Dad...

Being the oldest of two,

I have one brother, Ron.

I suppose,

I am the one most like my dad and his family.

At least that is what I am often told.

Ron bears strong resemblances to my mom's side.

And did you catch the name similarities???

...Rhonda & Ron
Yes, we were both named after my dad...Ronald!

...or Big Ron, a nickname he is now called!
Not that he is "big."

My guess, it is just his presence.

My dad was a traveling salesman, for most of my early childhood.

During the week, many times my mom was left to fill both parental roles.

She was a wonderful, stay-at-home mom, and I'm sure at times,

it must have been stressful for her, but she never let it show.

My dad was very outgoing, and could be a lot of fun.

He wasn't a cold person, but he didn't show or tell of his affections often.

One could "read between the lines" of his actions, and know that you were loved.

He showed it in his own unique way.

Some of the best memories spent with him,

were fishing trips, in which he would bait my hook with worms over, and over, and over...

Minus the moments he spent retrieving my tangled line from of a tree,

...or taking a slippery fish or nasty eel off my hook!

My dad was a member of the country club.

But this wasn't a fancy,

high maintenance with expensive fees, kind of country club.

It was just a simple, basic place to hangout on the afternoons and weekends, on the outskirts of the local papermill.

My dad often let me go with him,

and drive the golf cart as he played,

traveling from hole to hole.

He was also very forgiving when I came close to running the both of us

into the ponds around the course,

...more times than my pride will allow me to remember.

Nor did he go into a tirade,

on our first driving lesson when I was fifteen.

He tried to teach me to drive,

on his old 1960-something Ford truck, that had the gears on the column.

I mistook the clutch for the brake,

barely escaping the oncoming path of an eighteen-wheeler pulp truck.

When I was in college, we both caught the antiquing, junkin' bug!

To this day, no one appreciates and treasures "our junk,"

as much as we two do.

And our family claims we are not good for each other.

..instigating the other to buy such stuff.

In sheer defense, this has created a firm bond between us. :)

{Pictures are from my Wedding in '92}
Caption for picture below,

Dad telling Kevin... "No, she's yours now....you are not bringing her back home to me..."

(He really said this! LOL!}

As the years pass, and we have children of our own, we come to appreciate our parents more. Times when we thought they were being unfair, we realize as we are faced with similar parenting scenarios, that they did the best they could...and at times find ourselves acting in the same manner they did. I know I do! And as we ALL get older, the bridge that connects us turns into a friendship, and we realize that we are a lot more like our parents, than we would have ever imagined growing up!

I learned a lot from my dad, and until I married Kevin, I thought he was the smartest man in the world, "smiles" ...I say that because Kevin is a pretty smart fellow & great dad, too! LOL!

But the most important thing my dad taught me, he did so without saying a word. He taught me to pray!

When I was a little girl, I went back to my parent's bedroom one night, and my dad was on his knees, by his bedside, praying! This was humbling for me, an image I'll never forget! As far as I know, this is still a nightly ritual for him!

I feel extremely blessed to still have my dad. Kevin does not, and we all miss his dad, Bill!

Although he probably will not see this,

I do wish my dad, a Very Happy Father's Day, with love~

Encouraging Words for this Wednesday, come from Deuteromy 6:4-7,

"Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord Your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up."