I am a lucky man. I have an outstanding father who has been there for all of my 33 years. These days, Father’s Day mean more to me than they used to, but not in just the I’m-getting-older-so-holidays-mean-more kind of way. Father’s Day mean more now because it has been revealed to me over the past couple of years that holding the title of Father means stepping up to the plate when it matters most.
When it means sacrificing yourself so that your child can have a better life, so that they can come to appreciate what this means and the do the same for their children.
There are simply too many fathers out there who put themselves first, leaving broken children who spend the rest of their lives trying to fill that void. There are too many fathers who work and work and work, and when they turn around, their children are too old to reach.
My Dad took me camping, canoeing, bicycling, hunting, and motorcycle riding. Not many kids, especially these days, are able to say that. During our adventures, we didn’t always get along (dumping him out in the canoe comes to mind), but, at the end of the day, we knew that spending time with each other was the most important thing. I remember how he always wanted me to have a motorcycle, but my mother objected. It was less than a week after he and my mom split up that I had a Honda 150 cc trail bike. Within two years, I was racing motocross every weekend that I spent with him. He would pick me up on Friday afternoon and drive me to the nearest track, which was 3 hours away, and I’d be out on the track that Saturday racing my little heart out.
He just wanted me to be happy and to have opportunities that he didn’t growing up. And this is why the world needs more fathers like Randal Liles. Happy Father’s Day, Pops.
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