Fathers Day

Tonight, I laid down trying to go to sleep…clearly that went well since I am still NOT asleep.

My mind was going through inflation…not sure why since I can’t stop it and worrying about it doesn’t help…

Then I remembered back to the 80s. The years I was growing up. I was five…and I remember everyone was always cranky….l remember Carter was President….because my Dad would yell at the tv quite frequently…saying something negative…and then say our Presidents name 🥴.

We lived out in the country…and had the longest commute…it felt like we rode the bus forever, and then our Dad would pick us up in his big chevy truck.

I will not argue about Chevy or Ford….my father is a chevy man. Made my brother n law park his Ford further down the driveway…and when I bought a Toyota, you would have thought I told him I committed a crime and was going to jail.

I personally, I’m not a huge fan of American cars (says the girl who spent half her life by the side of the road with said American cars).

Tonight though, I remember that Chevy truck. The red and black vinyl seats. Don’t even know if we wore seat belts…pretty sure we did not. Dad always put his arm out to catch me..when we stopped suddenly. Said it was habit from my older sisters before seat belts were even a thing.

Dad always drove with the window down…one.arm.on the door, the other holding the wheel.

He would tell my sister and I about work, about his life…what he wanted for us. I was too young to appreciate it…but it’s one of the reasons why I love the “golden hour”. Turning into a gravel driveway with the dog barking at the truck…wondering what Mom made for dinner. The horses at the gate….always a puppy somewhere…and that glorious sunset over the barn.

I choose to remember those days….and the silly jokes my sister and Dad would play on Mom… They both could tell the best jokes…I always messed them up. The stories dad would tell from work…and the tv on after dinner always. Sometimes, if Mom was on some new idea…the summer I churned butter (the only plus was watching tv) or the time we actually had to shuck corn…my hands would hurt so bad. Mother teaching us to freeze corn…..to this day….Not a fan🙈.

There was also the time we picked berries for her jam (sweaty but definitely worth it!) The years we would put up our own pool….never was life better….and the library every week…that was summer.

The Summer our dog ate beets from the composte pile and there were purple lawn ornaments everywhere 😁. The time there were party lines when we called someone. Learning how to ride a bike on gravel….my Dad was over my reasoning on why I could not ride…and literally pushed me down a hill🙈….it worked🥴. Or the time I decided that I indeed could raise a family of mice with just cheese (sadly it rained overnight and that dream came to a sad end). Or the time my niece and I found a bat and put in a jar..but then realized we had to set it free…we did…absolutely terrifying.

This summer…there is still a pool…no jam…tv is still on…Dad is still yelling at the tv…no more funny jokes. No more drives in the chevy truck…no more conversations about work. Horses have been sold and by now no longer living…as well as the dogs and cats. No more churning of butter…no more gardening…the final “golden hour” is upon us…and all those stories….and jokes…I forget…but I won’t forget the laughter.

I won’t forget how my Dad loved nothing more than to laugh…how he sung the best songs. How he could open any jar in the whole world. How he could fix anything and build anything. How I got my straight blonde hair from him….

My sense of humor….and my horrible temper. He wasn’t a violent man…but he could yell. 🥴

How he worked so hard so we could have the best. How he taught me to work hard….and how proud he was to send us to a good school.

This year will be different….a medical bracelet…but some great lemon pie…and hopefully a few laughs…because…