Share a story about your Father

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  • La_Amazona
    La_Amazona Posts: 4,855 Member
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    I love my daddy SO much. I cannot imagine my life without him. I have 2 sisters who love him just the same. Something about our father that we cherish.

    My daddy is such a funny man! I like to say I get my awesome sense of humor from him.

    There are a million stories. But one funny (well maybe not so funny then but now it is) is when I was about 14-15 my parents were fighting. Back in the day, they would FIGHT fight. At the time, my dad drank a lot there were screaming matches in our home almost every weekend. Well my mom was onto my dad late one night and my dad threw a frozen chicken at her (yes, frozen chicken!!) and she ducked! When she did, the chicken hit me instead!! It was horrible... but oh so funny now.

    My favorite memory is my wedding day. I am the oldest and was the first to get married. He had been really irritated all day long. My mom says it's because my dad won't speak of his emotions, he just shows them through his actions.
    Well apparently his tux pants were huge. So huge that not even a belt would help. He was even more pissy! He said he wouldn't come! To my wedding! He was having a terrible 2's temper tantrum!
    I was already late so I had to go. I get to the church and there is my daddy as well. We talked a bit but since we didn't have time because I was so late, he soon after walks me down the aisle.
    The time came to literally give me away, so he picks up my veil, kisses me and then hugs me. He starts to cry so hard. I start to cry. We just hugged for literally a whole minute there at the front of the church while everybody just watched. It was just me and him at that moment. I had never seen him cry with such emotion except when his mom had died when I was a young girl. I'm crying right now just thinking about it!!!
    And for a second I tried to come out of the hug but he wouldn't let me go!! Finally he did and I was married but I still hear about that moment of my wedding to this day. Everybody says there wasn't a dry eye there in the church.

    Oh how I love that man!
  • kat05317
    kat05317 Posts: 96 Member
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    My father was 41 years old when I was born, and was such a wonderful father; he always teased me about anything, (said I was the only one of his kids with a sense of humor) would sit and talk with me as long as I needed or wanted to, taught me that it was ok to love a person but not like all their actions, played softball with me, he was a very caring person with lots of love not just for me but his fellow man as well. I can't remember him ever saying a mean thing about another person, and the only time he cussed was at our car when it broke down and he couldn't fix it himself. (a mechanic he was not...) He simply smiled when people thought he was my grandfather and not my dad. He died six years ago, but I still miss him and I really wish he could have met my two kids. I still wish I could talk to him, he was my rock.
    Thanks for letting me share.
  • PlanetVelma
    PlanetVelma Posts: 1,231 Member
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    We lived in a very small town and my dad used to like to start rumors to see how they would grow. LOL He started a rumor one summer that the empty field across from our house was going to be used for a carnival/circus for 4th of July. My parents were divorced and I lived with my dad so I knew about his little joke....so one day my mom stops by to talk to my dad about something I did, after their very serious conversation she mentioned to him that she had heard there is going to be a circus in town for the 4th. I think my dad chewed a hole in his cheek trying not to say anything. After my mom left he laughed so hard he cried. I have no idea why that amused him so much, but it did. I loved seeing him happy and laughing....

    My dad passed away right after I turned 18 in 1993, he was the type of person you would never think would die. He was the strongest person I knew, so his death was devestating. He always was straight up with you - never beat around the bush and if he liked you - you knew it! If he didn't like you, you absolutely knew it without a doubt! LOL

    My dad went to Vietnam during his enlistment, suffered from PTSD and had other medical issues (he was 46 when he passed), but he was MY dad - flashbacks and all. I never regretted living with him, we didn't have a lot of stuff...sometimes we didn't even have food, but I wouldn't have traded the time I had with him for anything in the world. It was hard, I had to take care of him due to his drinking issues and yea I had to grow up fast, but some of my best memories were from those years I lived with him after the divorce.

    When I had my son, I decided to name him after my dad and vowed that I would give my son the type of childhood my father should have had. My dad suffered abuse at the hands of a family member and struggled with his memories from the horror he saw while he was enlisted in the Army. He never asked for help and many times suffered in silence.

    I miss him everyday and I hope I made him as proud as I am to be his daughter. :)
  • cstark54
    cstark54 Posts: 9
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    Well I wish I could say my Dad is as great as the rest of yours. My mom and Dad are currently getting a divorce after 30 years of marrige because he decided that he was bored with my mom and needed a new and exciting life. Needless to say me and my two sisters hate his girlfriend and she does not let him speak to us. I'm very sad.......... I wish I had my Dad back.
  • Mishy
    Mishy Posts: 1,551 Member
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    One of my favorite stories to tell about my dad is the time he took me to Kennywood, a cool amusement park in the Pittsburgh area with rides, games, ect., when I was younger and tried to win me a panda bear. After a few failed attempts, he really tossed the ball good but instead of going where it was supposed to it ended up knocking down the entire top row of pandas. :laugh:
  • jambs5
    jambs5 Posts: 114
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    I love and miss my dad very much. He suffered a massive stroke on his way to go deer hunting on 11/13/91. He couldn't say what he wanted to say, he had a sling for his right arm, and a brace for his right leg. My 2 oldest kids were 21 mos & 3 1/2 mos old at the time. My husband, kids, and I helped my mom care for my dad until his death on 1/31/07. My favorite memory of my dad; when we drove down to visit his sister Eleanor & husband Walt (my aunt/uncle & godparents) from Saginaw, MI to Danville, IL in his 1931 Model A Ford Coupe the summer of '85. Just the two of us and the open road. We then drove to Logansport, IN to visit his long time friend and navy buddy from WWII, Don (& his wife Fran). It was a great trip and a memory I'll always cherish. i also spent a lot of time in the garage helping my dad make hobby horses, duck crayon caddies, cutting boards, shelves, etc for family, friends, and all the grandkids (my nieces & nephews). I love and miss you Dad. Happy Fathers Day!
  • bmw4deb
    bmw4deb Posts: 1,325 Member
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    My dad taught me everything, is my everything!
    My dad will be gone 90 days, the day after fathers day.
    I will make the 7 hr drive to be there Daddy :cry:
  • healthyjen342
    healthyjen342 Posts: 1,435 Member
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    What a great post....My Father passed away in 1996 when I was 10 from Lung Cancer. My dad was super cool. He would always wear striped Lee Overalls with the hat to match (Like a train conductor) and he would always have a silver $2 coin and Double Bubble bubble gum in his pocket and be chewing on a Red Lobster toothpick. My parents shared custody, and when I was with my dad, the first thing we would do is go the the Silver Star Diner and get a bowl of Vanilla Bean ice cream :smile:
    To this day, that's my favorite ice cream. :heart: :heart: :heart: :heart: :heart: :heart: :heart:

    Then he would take me to the park..and when we got back to his house, we would listen to Jazz music on his record player while I tried to figure out what changed in his house..He always moved ONE thing before I got there, and I had to search to figure out what it was...

    He also had the coolest car ever...A 60something Dodge Dart...baby blue..with BABYJN on the License Plate.
    ...Man I miss those days! :cry:

    Great post (and blog idea!) Its so great to reminisce!
  • Cristy_AZ
    Cristy_AZ Posts: 986
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    Being the youngest of four and “Daddy’s baby girl”, there are so many it’s hard to choose. It’s been a long complicated difficult road in my adulthood and I am SO thankful to have a good relationship with my Dad again. But I have lots of great stories about my dad when I was little … and lots of little sayings, like “if you don’t play, they can’t win” (meaning head games – people picking on me). “I’ll be jiggered” he always said that when he found out something he didn’t know or realized he was wrong about something… to this day I don’t know what it really means.

    He taught me to fish – bait my own hook etc., and to clean and cook the fish we ate.

    He taught to drive in his 1963 VW bug (which he still has, he got it restored some years back, it is SWEET!)

    So here’s a story he told me recently, he was showing me old, old photos (from the early early 50s) he was taking from slides and putting on the computer and there was this dark, grey, old building with broken windows – looked like something out of an old war movie and I asked him about it.. he got all serious looking for a second and then laughed and said “I think I almost got shot that day, but at the time I was just worried about my camera” So, the story goes that he was taking pictures of this old building through barb wire fence in Germany while stationed there in the Army, and an armed German soldier came and told him he couldn’t be there, wasn’t allowed to take photos, asking who he was, who the pictures were for etc., in German and broken English and my Dad in English and very little German, trying to explain that he was on leave, he was not working for anyone, that the pictures were for his personal use. He said another soldier came along and they spoke to each other, he couldn’t really understand, my Dad showed them pictures he had taken and developed to send home to my mom… pictures of the countryside, flowers, barns and farm houses, stuff like that… and they let him keep his camera. .

    My Dad also has a picture hanging on his wall of him and his younger brother who. He said he bought the camera at a five and dime and that was the only pictures that ever turned out before it broke all together. It’s the only picture they ever had of him, he passed away soon.

    Love my Dad, he’s turning 80 this summer and we’re having a big surprise party/family reunion type thing for him!
  • crazymama2two
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    I used to babysit my twin sisters a lot as i was nine years older than them. my dad worked A LOT of overtime. he worked 7a to 3p and then 3p to 11p a lot and my mom worked 3p to 11p. so i was always on guard at night making sure the houe was locked, etc. well, i was about 14 at this time and i hear noises outside and the bathroom window sounded like it was getting tampered with and the back door knocked and i said who is it and no one answered. i called the police. i see the polcie come down the street. they knock on my door with the guy in hand and say "miss, is this your dad?" I said "WHAT THE -- yess!!!!" they let him go. he came in and laughed his *kitten* off saying i did good, i did good. i was just testing you. yeah, that was my dad. he did a lot fo stuff like that. i could shrae pages and pages of stories like this. i miss him. thanks for making me remember this and smile.
  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
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    I have not one single positive memory of my father.
    Just fear and pain.
    I'm jealous of you that do.
    Cherish those memories, and those of you who still can, make some more.
  • djthom
    djthom Posts: 651 Member
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    My dad is the best man I know! He was very strict, but fun and loving. He is still the person I go to whenever I need advice on anything important.
    Growing up we spent our whole summers at our cottage. My father would come up on the weekends. You could feel the excitement in the air on Friday's as all the women and children got ready for the arrive of the men. My dad would always show up with a new toy or game for us and flowers for my mom. After dinner all the kids and my dad and a few of the others would all go out and play ringalerio(sp), kind of like what the kids call manhunt nowadays. On Sunday we would all say goodbye and my mom would ride down to the end of road with him to say her own private goodbye. I cherish those memories:heart:
  • findingfit23
    findingfit23 Posts: 846 Member
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    My dad was helping me put on my winter coat one day when I was little, he zipped my neck. Ill never forget it, and I dont let him forget it either :)
  • juliecat1
    juliecat1 Posts: 3,455 Member
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    I have two dads now! Adoptive and biological which I just met a few years ago. They couldnt be more different!

    Adoptive dad is a real mans man. He taught me to hunt and fish and clean just about every kind of critter. A skill Im pretty okay with not ever having to use again. haha Hes not much of a talker so weve never really gotten to know each other very well or been very close. But man can he sing. I loved riding in the truck with him and hearing him belt out country music. He sounds like Elvis.

    My biological dad has never met a stranger and will talk your ear off. Hes very sensitive and loves with ever fiber of his being. Its been both awkward and wonderful getting to know him.
  • Sweetcheeks278
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    I had an AMAZING father. He was the glue that held our family together. He taught me so many things and I am so happy that my son got to spend 5 wonderful years with him learning from him and spending time together. They had a bond that is so rare. When my father died suddenly 5 1/2 years ago my son was 5 and didn't speak for 2 mths after. He is 10 now and still talks about him almost everyday which makes me happy beyond words that my father had such an impact on him. My daughter was born 2 yrs almost to the day after my father died. We named her after him, Veronica and we call her "Ronni". I wish more than anything else that they could have met. My daughter is quite the handful (like I was) and sometimes I can hear him laughing when she has been extra naughty. He would have loved her so much. :brokenheart:
  • Sweetcheeks278
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    I have not one single positive memory of my father.
    Just fear and pain.
    I'm jealous of you that do.
    Cherish those memories, and those of you who still can, make some more.

    I'm so sorry. My husband has a similiar situation and he makes sure EVERYDAY that our children know that he loves them. His circumstances did nothing but make him a wonderful father. I hope you are able to find a positive out of a negative as well. ((Hugs))
  • wjkirby
    wjkirby Posts: 120
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    My Dad died in 1979 in his sleep from a heart attack. I had just turned 20. He was a surveyor and a draftsman for the N & W Railroad and we spent many weekends doing surveying jobs for extra money. He was also a talented carpenter and handyman. Our family would buy fixer-upper homes and remodel them, sell them and then buy a bigger fixer-upper. The last few years of his life we built a big plantation style house. My Mother's dream home. I didn't have him long but I learned how to be self-sufficient from him. I can build a house, do the plumbing and electrical, roofing, siding and whatever else I need to do. I think about him often when I'm out on my bass boat because I know he would have loved it. I went into the computer field a couple years after he died and that's something else I'm sure he would have loved. He was one of the smartest people I ever knew.
  • angisnee
    angisnee Posts: 236 Member
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    This thread is making me cry both for the happy and sad memories.

    One memory of my dad I cherish is how he helped me get ready for basic training. I'd never run more than 1 mile, and they required 2 miles in less than 19 minutes. He came with me to a delayed entry training day when we did a mock physical test. Even though he wasn't in the best shape, he did everything right along with me. We finished the run, but it took us over 20 minutes.

    When the time came for my first physical test in basic training, being able to imagine my dad running right along with me, I ran the 2 miles in 18:30! I don't think I ever told him how much that meant to me. I will be sure to soon. :smile:
  • Tinalynn15
    Tinalynn15 Posts: 25
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    I miss my father very much! I would like to say he was just the best dad in the whole world, however reality he had a lot of issues. But my best memory of him was when I was little I had a leg cramp and he rocked me and rubbed my leg for hours. I remember feeling so safe in his arms. Worse memory for me is he took his own life 5 years ago, however makes me get up every day and thank God I have to strength to do anything and it’s so important to never give up!
  • amarie35
    amarie35 Posts: 338 Member
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    I have too many stories to just pick one. All I can say is that GOD has blessed me w/ a wonderful dad. He has always been there for me, whether I need advice, a helping hand, a shoulder to cry on, support, motivation, or just a friend to talk to.

    I don't know what I'd do w/out my little bitty daddy. To me, he is the BEST dad in the world & I thank GOD for allowing him the chance to father me on this earth. :smile: