June 21, 2005

Belated Father's Day

I don't really remember my biological father, seeing as he decided to seek other pastures when I was 3 years old. However, my stepfather provided the male influence that I'd need growing up. No one would ever confuse him with a Father Knows Best type of dad, but he always loved and protected me. Still does, by the way, even though he and my mother are no longer together.

What kind of a father was he? The kind who could ungently disarm some jackass who had made the mistake of shooting him, and still cry like a baby at my wedding. The kind who thrashed three guys who'd made the mistake of beating up his brother, but who was almost afraid to hold my firstborn for fear of breaking him. The kind who, despite his many fights with my mother, has always, always looked out for her and hers, and still does to this day. The kind who went looking for payback the night I got mugged(those guys were lucky the police found them first). The kind who managed to scrape together $1000 for me when I was in trouble, at a time when he could barely find 2 nickels to rub together. And most of all, the kind who always ends our conversation by telling me he loves me.

What makes a father? Not biology. Anyone too stupid to wear a condom can help create a child. Fathers are known by their actions. My real father isn't bound to me by blood, but rather ties of the heart and spirit. I love him dearly.

Update: Vox posts on this topic. Excerpt:


Fathers cast great shadows; it is daunting to step out from them and for the first time clearly see the man behind the role. It is both a disappointment and a relief, but it is necessary. And if we cannot hope to match the giants of our youth, we can still walk in their footsteps.

Happy Father's Day, Dad.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 04:51 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 337 words, total size 2 kb.

1 Perfect quote.

Posted by: Harvey at June 21, 2005 10:27 PM (ubhj8)

2 I thought so, too. Goofy thing: my web filters here at work prevent me from accessing your site. Considering some of the sites that DON'T get filtered, I'm a bit surprised.

Posted by: physics geek at June 22, 2005 08:36 AM (Xvrs7)

3 YAY! I'm evil! :-)

Posted by: Harvey at June 22, 2005 10:21 PM (ubhj8)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Comments are disabled. Post is locked.
17kb generated in CPU 0.0548, elapsed 0.7859 seconds.
91 queries taking 0.7771 seconds, 235 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.