This weekend was not only the first Father's day since my father passed away, it would have also been his 76 birthday. However, rather than mourning, we decided to spend the weekend doing something my dad would have loved. As a child, we would spend part of every summer at the beach. We would rise with the sun and head to the shore in search of the biggest shells we could find. Those mornings with dad were precious, we would chase crabs back to the sea and splash about in the waves for hours.Those are happy memories... perhaps the reason that even to this day I find the beach to be my peaceful escape whenever I need a break. I feel blessed to have those happy memories... but I also can't help but wonder how many little girls were missing their daddies this Father's Day. How many of our nation's children were sending skype messages to their dads who are serving in our armed forces over seas? How many of our children are growing up without a "father" role model in their life? I am blessed to have had the opportunity to make memories with my dad and I will continue to hope that all children missing their dads on this fathers day will soon have their dads home with them. May God keep our military out of harms way, so that they can return home to make memories with their children.
Dedicated to our nation's Military Dads... Happy Father's Day.