Father's Day is always a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, I enjoy basking in the holiday spotlight after a couple of months of nonstop gift buying, card writing and party planning (both girls' birthdays, Deb's birthday, Mother's Day, my mom's birthday).
On the other, there's a feeling of emptiness because my own father has been dead for 15 years now, and we didn't have the greatest relationship for much of the time I knew him. But enough time has passed that whatever shortcomings the man had, and they were plentiful, can be forgiven, or at least accepted. He certainly wasn't a monster. Just selfish and old-fashioned, like a lot of men of his generation and upbringing. He made a lot of stupid decisions that screwed up our family, but I like to think he inadvertently taught me a lot about fatherhood and being a good man.
So here's to you, Dad, wherever you are.
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