I am sure we could all argue right now… but I don’t want to fight.  But if I chose to go down that road with you I am sure the conversation would go something like this…

Me: “I have the best Dad!”
You: “So, do I.”
Me: “I know, but mine is really special.”
You: “Well, so is mine.”
Me: “I know, but I really think mine is the best of all bests.”
You: cricket cricket – blank stare – mentally you are thinking “Is she 5? Are we really going there?”

The point is for many, your Dad is the best of all bests. And, rightfully so.  I mean he is your Dad.  And how special is that?  That we each have this special someone that we call our own and love through and through.  He is the best and you couldn’t imagine anyone better to fill the shoes of the man you call “Dad.”

Well, that is how I feel and today is that special man’s birthday.

My Dad is a quiet guy.  A man of few words. He doesn’t like attention. In fact, our family teases him on his seriousness. If he cracks a smile, well that is equivalent to your and my chuckle and if he chuckles, well boys and girls we just peed our pants with laughter.  With all that seriousness comes respect.  When he talks you listen.

But for me and my four siblings, we all know a different side to our Dad.  There is a humorous and witty side that few see.  For a man who is so quiet, I believe he fights uncomfortableness with goofy humor.  And, I cannot tell you how many times he has made us children put our hands together and yell out the “rally cry” which he created and sort of sounds like a dying Falcon, just in case we ever get separated.

He is extremely difficult at times.  So, set in his ways.  If you didn’t know him well, like we do, he can be hard to read.  He is meticulous in the manner in which he does certain things and by golly he is not a fan of you wasting money. So, don’t brag about something you bought because you wanted it.

But for his family, we know that he is extremely giving, caring and kind.  Being the oldest of five kids, which range from 27 – 11, I have watched him and my Mom make sacrifices over the years so each one of us in due time could have a car and go to college.  And, I have seen him light up when he has spent more than he would ever allow us to in order to buy one of us something we wanted.

I have learned from my Dad that – life is not fair, you are not entitled to anything and that the best people in this world are the ones who get up, work hard and do it all over again.  I have also learned that family comes first and if ever you need someone to be honest with you – Dear Ol’ Dad will be there.  Whether it is what you want to hear or what you know you will hear but wish you hadn’t.  The brutal honesty that comes from our parents, well it comes from a lot of love.

As, I get older I look at my Dad differently.  He is my Dad yes, but also a great friend.  When I watch him with the baby of our family, Liv, or as Dad likes to call her “Sugar Bear.”   Well, my heart swells as I watch him and her interact and see their relationship change through the years like ours.

Happy Birthday, Dad!  Oh, and there is that smile, or for all of us a nice chuckle…