You become a father in a few short seconds…

…fatherhood takes the rest of your life.

On Father’s Day 2021 I find myself in a unique place in time:

• My father has been gone for 9 years, but I still see and feel his influence in my life daily.
• All three of my sons celebrate Father’s Day as fathers in their own right: Between them, they have a 13-year old, a nine-year old, an 8-year old, a 10-year old, an 8 year old, a 2-year old, a 16-month old, and a 10-month old.
• My oldest son left for college in 1999; the youngest graduated from college six years ago, but the flip side of being empty nesters:
• My oldest son and wife welcomed the teenage years with our oldest grandson this year; along with his sister and brother, they are definitely always on the go. The mountains, streams, and lakes beckon, and they are a fishing family much of their free time.
• My middle son and wife continue their adventures as an Air Force family, along with providing foster care for 2 siblings (the 16th and 17th children they’ve had in their care over the last five years). With their two daughters, their household is always in motion – but it’s filled with love, overflowing.
• My daughter is moving to a new and exciting work adventure this week. It will require commuting, work from anywhere, and living “here and there” for a few months, but she and her husband have done that before. I am so proud of her recognition of excellence at her workplace of the last 6 1/2 years which led to this new opportunity.
• My youngest son and his wife have weathered the work hardships of 2020 while welcoming their son, and remain committed to their work while keeping family first. They are both loving, generous, and absolutely infatuated parents of the youngest grandchild.
• Of course, without my wife none of this would have been possible. Through 41+ years of marriage we’ve had laughter, tears, adventures, and accumulated thousands of life stories of our family’s experiences. The journey continues each day, and becomes sweeter.

Fatherhood is a journey, and each step along the way brings a new opportunity to grow and learn just how to be a father. I’m 40+ years in, and sometimes I feel like it has just begun.

At other times, I look back and wonder where the time has gone.