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REFLECTION

Paternal gifts in time and acts

Hey Dad,

I would like to wish you a very happy Father's Day. It's hard to buy Father's Day cards because they seem to be for dads who are either like Bart Simpson's dad or couch-potato dads or golf-fanatic dads. They just don't fit you. So, I wrote my own: 

Thank you for all the time you spent fixing my toys, bikes and other stuff that was important to me. 

Thanks for taking us to Tom's Stationery for candy and then waiting an hour as we decided which kind to get with our two nickels.

Thanks for all the rides when I was a teenager and the offers to pick me up anytime - no questions asked.

Thanks for teaching me how to use your tools and the days you spent laying the side driveway with me, one brick at a time. 

Thanks for teaching me how to drive and for showing me the importance of driving safely. 

Thanks for being my guinea pig as I learned how to cut hair.

Thanks for taking me to the ocean all year 'round and for teaching me how to swim in the ocean. 

Thanks for teaching me not to buy things I can not afford and that "things" do not make me happy.

Thanks for showing me how to live with faith and that serving God begins at home. 

Also, thanks for showing me that it's a good idea to go to Mass each week. 

Thanks for teaching me to always pull for the underdog and to keep plugging away even when things are tough.

Thanks for showing me the joy of reading and learning, and the benefit of keeping my dictionary close at hand so I can easily use it.

Thanks for being a person who doesn't complain.

Thanks for showing me that being kind to my husband's family is being kind to my husband. And that's a good thing.

Thanks for my giving me my nickname, Berni, and how it made me feel special to hear it. 

Thanks for teaching me the joy of planting and watching something grow. 

Thanks for showing me how to enjoy simple things like a good meal, a nap, staying in shape, a joke and a garage sale.

Thanks for never playing favorites with us. (I am your favorite, though. Right, Dad?)

Thanks for teaching me that my word is everything and raising me to do what I say I will do.

Thanks for showing me the joy of having a hobby and enjoying it when I can.

Thanks for all the weekend morning bacon-and-eggs breakfasts! 

Thanks for teaching me that the most important relationship in the house is the one between my husband and me. 

Thanks for teaching me to take care of my stuff and that there is satisfaction in taking my time and doing something right the first time.

Thanks for showing me how to make daily errands more fun by talking and listening to strangers.

And lastly, Dad, thanks for all the times you took my face in your hands and told me I was beautiful. 

(Bernadette Bonanno is a member of Our Lady of Mercy parish in Colonie.)

(06/18/09) [[In-content Ad]]

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