Happy Father’s Day

While I have had no contact with my biological father since I was 10, except for once when I turned 18 to see if he had changed, which he hadn’t, I have been fortunate growing up to have an abundance of fathers. I want to tell you all about one of my most memorable fathers.

Brother Wolf was in his late 70s or early 80s when he became one of my fathers. He would be in his late 80s or early 90s now. I am unsure if he is still living, but if he is I wish him the happiest father’s day ever. Brother Wolf had one leg. The other had been amputated just below the knee some years earlier. This darling old man, for 5 years, woke up at 4:30 am, drove to my family’s house by 5am, and picked up myself or my sisters, whichever needed a ride to a seminary class that started at 6am every morning before we went to school.

My sisters and I attended a school half way across town, so he drove us up to the church by the school, waited an hour for Seminary class to end, and then drove us to school for our early 7am class. He enabled not only myself, but my sisters to all graduate from Seminary, as well as attend a better school than we would have been able to without his assistance.

My family’s car at the time was called Big Birtha. It was a station wagon which started about 10% of the time, and didn’t drive well. Brother Wolf knew this, and would call every Sunday morning, to see if we needed a ride to church.

When my younger sister got married, this darling old man, who we hadn’t seen for 2 years, drove half way across the state to go to her wedding. Someone came down the stairs and told my sister, that this little old man with one leg, could not make it down the stairs. My sister took off from her receiving line to go welcome Brother Wolf, and spent a good amount of time just talking to him.

This old man, one of my fathers, taught me that in life that the most important thing you can give is service to others with out any thought of what you get back from it. He taught me by doing, not by telling. In my life I have tried to pay forward what this kind gentle old man did for me. Anytime someone tells me they need something, if it is within my means to make it happen, it happens.

I wish all fathers out there a very happy father’s day. To my mom, Thank you for being both a father and a mother to me. I love you! Grandpa Happy Father’s day. I love you! To all the men who have been a father to me, Thank you for your service, and I love you all. Happy Father’s Day.

~ by Liadan on 15 June, 2008: Sunday.