Father's Day -- Sunday Cardinal Couple

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

A happy Father's Day to the part of our readership that can respond to that title. I tend to frown on specific days designated by Madison Avenue that laud congratulatory roles for occasions ( for example...are you really just a Veteran or Secretary just one day a year?) but...given the assumption that acknowledgement is usually a good thing...here's an extra salute to you on this one of the 365 days a year that you fit the title. 


Remembrances of fathers can be a tricky thing. Degrees of contact, friendship and familiarity of one's father can vary widely. If there is a father at all. How is the day explained to those whose mothers chose other ways of becoming mothers? For some, Father's Day is a bitter reminder of a tough childhood or abandonment. 


On this Father's Day, I think of my late father. My dad was a hard working, honest and gregarious fellow. Discipline, following rules and a sense of order were very important to him. It may have been why he enjoyed golf and baseball so much. 


In golf there is a structure and format to the swing and striking of the ball. I played golf with my father for many years. I can still here him admonishing me to "bend your knees, tuck your right elbow in, break your wrists at four o' clock, take a divot, keep your eye on the ball and don't raise up." 

If you're not a golfer...the above words probably sound like the maniacal ravings of a drill sergeant or exercise instructor. 

I was never a great golfer when I played (I gave up the game 15 years ago -- right around the time my Dad stopped playing) but I have a hole-in-one and a 350 yd. drive as the highlights of my game. My Dad was there for both and I do believe the accomplishments meant more to him than me. 

The instructions of a father...those life lessons passed on...fade as time goes by. If you're lucky...you pass the ones you remember to your children. My Dad was also a "5th quarter" coach. After a game, after the post-game talk from the coaches...I knew my Dad would also have his say on how I performed. A lot of times, it differed from what the coaches had to say. 


I have friends who never knew their fathers or had troubled relationships with them. They turned out pretty well. 


A father is a mentor...and throughout my life I have had other mentors and have tried to be a mentor. One of the most important things we can do in our lives is work for the betterment and improvement of those around us. It is best served in a non-obtrusive way. Advice available but never forced. A listening ear can sometimes be worth 10,000 words.


On this day of backyard barbecues, gifts, celebrations and family get-together's for Father's Day...try to see the event as a gathering not so much to celebrate "the one" but as a gathering of the whole to celebrate the joy and aspect of life, familiarity and relationships. Bondings that can be done any day of the year. 

Father's Day has been described as being akin to Darth Vader's Birthday. For all the times that Dad forgot to get us napkins when he bought us ice cream, when he filled us up with sweets and popcorn two hours before dinner, when he sent us into the kitchen to fetch him another beer and when he patiently taught us how feather the brake, ease into the accelerator and hold the wheel at "10" and "2"...


Thank You.


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Our weekly radio show was not on WCHQ 100.9 FM yesterday because the station has been knocked off the air due to the recent storms in the area. It was broadcast on the Internet, though, at CrescentHillRadio.com and will be available on the SoundCloud later today. 

Worldwide Jeff and Sam the Dry Weather Intern joined me in the studio to discuss women's sports and the boys fared well on the weekly quiz. Can you beat them? 

LINK BELOW:

WOMEN'S SPORTS ON THE AIR!  


paulie
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