My Two Dads!

“Anyone can be a father, but it takes a real man to be a dad.” How many times have you heard this saying? In my case, it really is true. Neither of the two men who actually raised me is my biological father. Now, one of these men happens to be my grandfather, so we do share some genetic material; but the other is the man who married my single mother when I was a little Diva-In-Training, and raised me as if I was his own child. It takes a very special person to take on the responsibility of raising someone else’s child. It takes an extraordinary person to love, nurture, and sacrifice for that child.

I am a firm believer that girls need a strong and caring male figure in their lives as they grow up. Someone who teaches her right from wrong. Someone who protects her from things that can hurt her. Someone who instills in her a sense of self worth. Someone who teaches her not to settle for anything less than great. Someone who provides an example of what a real man is, and how a real man should treat her. These are all the things that my dads taught me, and continue to teach me, throughout my life. It feels so good to know that there is always someone working behind the scenes on your behalf, simply because you are their daughter, and anything less would be uncivilized….and completely unacceptable. 

I am forever grateful to Earnie and Ron for everything they have done in nurturing, loving, guiding, and protecting me. I would not be the dynamic person I am today if I did not have them in my life. On this Father’s Day, I want to say “Thank You” to my dad and granddad. So here I go:

Grandaddy, thank you for being a great dad to my mother throughout her life. Thank you for supporting her decision to bring me into the world. Thank you for picking me up from school. Thank you for taking me to Coney Island in the Summer for cotton candy. Thank you for bringing home Popeye’s biscuits for me, just because. Thank you for giving me money to put in the collection plate at church. Thank you for taking me to take my road test so that I could get my license. Thanks for being an example of what a husband should be to his wife.

Pops, thank you for immediately stepping up to the plate, and bringing a big brother with you for me. Thank you for loving me and my mother. Thank you for putting a roof over my head, clothes on my back, and food on the table.  Thank you for running off all of my raggedy boyfriends because you know they were not good enough. Thank you for teaching me how to drive. Thank you for the Neon, and the Blazer. Thank you for my first cell phone. Thank you for letting me grocery shop at your house. Thanks for helping me set high standards for the man I marry. Thank you for giving me away to my husband! Thank you for my college degree, and my law degree. And last, but certainly not lease, thank you for the EZ-Pass!

I can go on and on about how much Earnie and Ron mean to me, but I think you all would stop reading! So to sum things up, Dads are so important. So important! And on this Father’s Day, I salute my two dads! You are both EXTRAORDINARY, and I love you!