Sunday, June 21, 2009

Fathers and Daddies


Father's Day is going swimmingly over here at blessourhearts so far. The fisherpeople chose (quite rightly, I think) to come home last night rather than to spend another fiery hot night in the un-airconditioned house on the island. I know that those of you who do not live in this part of the world cannot imagine why I keep talking about the heat but as my son Hank said last night, "It really is impossible not to talk about it."
It's that hot.
Sure, we've had heat in these temperatures before. But it's so still. There is no breeze, just the bake of the sun on the earth and it's quite literally like opening the oven door when you open the the door to outside.
It's a force to reckoned with.
I let another baby chick die yesterday and I'm sure it was my fault. I've had the chicks outside in the bigger outside box and although I checked them frequently yesterday, I was gone for quite awhile and when I got home, one of them was dead, lying stretched out in the dirt, already stiff.
I will not be taking those chicks out today.
I buried the poor thing beside the canna lilies in one of my flower beds. It was the chick we'd named Elvira.
The other ones seem to be fine and they are growing at a phenomenal rate but I have decided that trying to raise baby chicks in any other season but early spring is not a good idea. There is a reason things happen when they do- that babies hatch in the spring and not in early summer.
At least here in Florida. Probably in most places.
I find it telling that my own babies were all born in either May or June except for the one I "planned" and that pregnancy was so different and so much more difficult than all the others that it makes me wonder about things.

But back to Father's Day.
I hadn't planned on cooking Father's Day breakfast this morning because I hadn't planned on Father being here but he was and he wanted eggs and sliced tomatoes and bacon and biscuits, of course. I found I didn't have either enough butter or ANY shortening to make the biscuits with but I had some cream cheese in the refrigerator and to tell you the truth- I don't know how long it had been there. But it smelled and looked fine and I used that in place of the shortening and I tell you what- those were some of the best biscuits I ever ate.
I peeled the tomatoes from the garden and sliced them up and scrambled eggs and put the biscuits in a shallow bowl with a green napkin to keep them warm and fried up the three pieces of bacon I had in the house and I think he was pretty happy with it.
Now he's out, cleaning the boat. When the fisherpeople got in last night they were exhausted, overheated, and wanting nothing more than a shower and to crawl into sheets that weren't dripping with humidity.
It was a fishing trip they'll never forget and I think it's one telling metaphor that they didn't see any dolphins the entire trip but saw a crazy number of sharks.

Why am I having such a hard time writing about Father's Day?
I just looked at the Father's Day post I wrote last year and I said the same thing.
But I said a good piece about the man who is the father of two of my kids and the Daddy of all of them. I don't think I can say it any better today so I'm sending you back there.

And because I do truly have a lot of love and affection for the other-father of two of my kids, I'd like to send you to a post I wrote about him here.

Look. I didn't have a good daddy. I didn't have a daddy at all. But perhaps because of that, I knew what I wanted and didn't want in a father for my own children and if that's so, it was worth it not to have a daddy of my own.

I think so. I do. And since I am the most blessed-beyond-belief woman in the world, how can I bitch about something that led me to here? I don't think I can.
I can only say I thank my lucky stars and every powerful force that I have what I have, that my children have the love of their fathers.
And I want to say Happy Father's Day to all the daddies out there. The ones with kids here and the ones with kids coming (Jason! Billy! Xbox!).
Happy Father's Day, y'all. Thanks for loving the babies. Thanks for loving the mamas because when you love the mamas, you are loving the babies. Two-for-one. Thanks for being the men who make the children feel safe and loved. Nothing on earth can make up for lack of that. Believe me.
Nothing.

And the pictures I'm posting are from Lily's wedding. Her daddy is walking her down the aisle and my other kids' father is there celebrating with his beautiful wife, my kids' other mother.

You see what kind of life I have?

Tonight we're going into town to see Jessie play some bluegrass at the Legion Hall and that's going to be fun. She fished hard all weekend and tonight she'll dress up and play mandolin and I'll hold her daddy's hand and we'll be so proud of her.

And in a few months, we're going to greet our grandchild together and this is going to be one lucky child because Mr. Moon is going to be his or her granddaddy.
I still haven't gotten my mind around that one, but it makes me cry to think about it.

Well. My brains are baked. I can't figure out any ending but that's okay because really- there is no ending to this story of fathers.

I will say this- when my kids go to write about Father's Day sometime, they're going to have good stories to tell. Really, really good stories that make them laugh so hard and maybe make them cry, too. In a good way.
And that's my every wish come true.

Happy Father's Day, y'all. I mean it.


P.S. Roll Up The Rugs
I love you, baby.

13 comments:

  1. XBox- You are just blinded by the glory of your glorifulness.
    (But thank-you and happy father's day)

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  2. We're all writing about the daddies in our lives today. Whatever the relationship, fathers make quite an impact on a girl.

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  3. Happy Father's Day, Mr. Moon. You're a wonderful man.

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  4. Glad to hear all the fish people made it back in their original forms... as opposed to being melted and having to be poured into jello molds and put in the fridge for week!

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  5. You are very blessed indeed, Ms. Moon.

    Lily is so beautiful. Do they not want to know the sex of the baby?

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  6. This has absolutely nothing to do with anything here... I just wanted to acknowledge our lovely butternut squash and your impeccable picking judgment. It is the tastiest and easiest to deal with (peeling wise) that I have ever experienced. It smelled to good when I cut it that I actually ate some of the middle raw! It tasted sort of like sweet pumpkin and cantaloupe. MMMMmmm...

    Thanks for saving us a corner of the garden. And for the seeds. And and and... you know, just everything.
    xo pf PS Will bring you some zuppa tomorrow!

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  7. I'm sorry about Elvira :( And so glad for all the love in your life.

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  8. Don't beat yourself up over your little chicken. It happens to people no matter what time of the year or where they live. I used to cry so when we'd lose a baby calf.
    Interesting on the spring birth idea. Another tidbit for you: schizoprenia is more common in people born in fall/winter months. Guess I'm doomed, being born in October and all.
    What about Ceara, I wonder...she was born in February, but was actually due in March...so far so good, I guess, though she's the first one to point out that her mom's crazy.
    Farty, on the other hand, was born in April, so I expect him to fully indulge his mother's eccentricities at all times.

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  9. I wished I'd chosen my children's father more wisely.

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  10. Michelle- Yes. They surely do. If they're good or they're bad, they certainly help shape who we are.

    Aunt Becky- I extended your wishes to Mr. Moon. And of course he said, "Who's Aunt Becky?" But he appreciated it.

    Petit Fleur- I think they would have appreciated spending the night in the refrigerator. I do. And Harley has another butternut to pick!

    Steph- I want to know the sex of that baby when he or she is born. And yes- I am so blessed.

    Maggie May- Thank-you, darling girl.

    Rachel- That is very interesting. Hmmmm. Well. I have so many theories.
    And you're too old to develop schizophrenia at this point. So don't worry.

    Ginger- Honey, it was 99% luck.

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  11. Oh Daddy is the sweetest and he will be a wonderful granddaddy!
    Thanks for taking care of me when I got home from the fishing excursion born out of hell (but I mean this is the best way possible, because it really was a lot of fun, if not for the heat).

    Those biscuits were just about the best...I wish I had one right now. Yum.

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  12. It IS utterly impossible NOT to discuss the heat. Opening the door IS like opening the oven. Don't worry - I completely understand.

    I had a very wonderful father's day, and I am glad you did too. The only think I would have changed is Florida's thermostat.

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