Happy Father’s Day

As Father’s Day is tomorrow I will, of course, be writing about my dad.
You see my dad chose to be my dad, he and my mom made a decision to become parents in their golden years. Years they could have just taken it easy, enjoyed retirement and gone on their merry way. They chose to take in and formally adopt a girl no one wanted. For that I will be forever grateful.
My dad was my hero, he was funny, smart, giving, tough, kind and said whatever he thought. He was the perfect example of how a true Christian should behave in all situations. He never spoke down to anyone, he listened to everyone’s opinions before voicing his own. He lived by example not words, now he had words but his example was tantamount to who he was.
I like to think I get a lot from him, my ability to laugh at tough situations in life, rely on God for everything. Recognize when God is sending help and opening doors and voice my opinion and listen to others. Express concern, take action when necessary and step back when needed.
My father was an extraordinary man, an example of manliness when the world was trying to stamp down on masculinity. He could fix anything that broke, he could sooth a crying child with a word and let would be suitors know he knew how to use a gun if need be.
This is one of my favorite stories, I rarely got second dates and I couldn’t figure out why. Until one of the boys I went out with finally told me what really happened after they knocked on the door.
Like any true girl of a certain age, I waited the 5 full minutes after the boy knocked on the door to come out of my room.
My dad took full advantage of that 5 minutes, he would silently lead the boys into the den, where his guns were on the wall. He would sit them in front of the guns, he would look at the guns, then look at the boy. He would do this the entire 5 minutes.
I went home and confronted my dad, he laughed for a full 20 minutes. He then said if a boy couldn’t withstand that kind of scrutiny he didn’t deserve me.
I miss that man so much. He was so full of life and laughter and was truly a man of God.
We could all use a Foy Testerman in our lives, I will be grateful the rest of my life that he chose to be my dad when he didn’t have to. That he gave up an easy life to take on a wild child and take on the Herculean task of taming her.
Happy Father’s Day to all of the dads out there, whether biological or otherwise, you all rock.