I wish my dad was still around to celebrate it with.
My father and stepfather passed away within a week of each other. My parents divorced when I was six, and my stepfather raised me as one of his own. One of the smartest, wisest men I ever knew.
Was never that close to my father, but we reconciled after I graduated from college. To this day, I'll never forget how proud he was when I took him to dinner at the Fort Bliss Officers Club during the summer of '76. It was a big deal to him, as he enlisted in the Navy in 1944.
I was also a much more mature and confident man after my four year hitch in Germany (77-81). I had a much greater perspective on life, and forgiving what was long since past.
I'll be thinking of them both on Sunday.
My Father's Day gift to my kids is (another) reminder that all transgressions against me, real or imagined, have been forgiven. I'll never forget when my FIL passed away. He was ill, but it was still sudden. Many of his ten children were devastated, because they didn't have a chance to tell him good bye, and make amends with him.
Once I became a father, it didn't take me long to understand the concept of unconditional love. I knew my FIL had forgiven them before he passed away, and I expressed that message to them.
The last thing I want for my kids is for them to have that same sense of guilt when I pass away. I've had an amazing life with many incredible experiences, and I know there's more to come. I think I've met a goal I set in my early 30s: to grow old without being bitter of things that didn't go my way, or opportunities that were not capitalized on. I've seen how that $hit can eat away at a person.
