Happy Father’s Day! I know I haven’t written in a while, but I wanted to come back to write a quick post in honor of my dad.

As I mentioned in my mother’s day blog, I’m extremely close to my parents, and my dad has always been someone who’s been there for me whenever I needed him. Similar to my mom, my dad makes a point to always be honest with me about my acting whenever I’m delivering anything less than my best, and I know that I can trust his input. Another way that he helps me is in my writing of this very blog, since I often send drafts to him for his opinion and proofreading (I always like having an outside opinion, since I can sometimes have blinders on when it comes to my writing). I also have to give him credit for all he did for me when I was a kid; since I grew up right in the middle of the Disney Renaissance, I was obsessed with every Disney movie I could get my hands on. Since I was an only child and honestly not the best at making friends, my dad was my frequent movie-watching buddy. And he was a trooper: because I have a tendency to get hyper-obsessed with one particular thing, be it a movie, tv show, or other (blame my Aspergers), I would insist that we watch certain movies over and over again to the point that I could recite the whole thing verbatim. Thus, my dad had to watch these movies over and over again, but he did so without complaint (he hates The Lion King to this day because of this). As an adult, I recognize how this would drive any sane person absolutely up the wall, and I have a deep appreciation for my dad for doing this for me.

I can also say confidently that my dad is one of the smartest people I know, which you probably assumed since he’s the one I go to for help with proofreading. Beyond that though, he’s always trying to learn more and keep his mind sharp. Even after retiring, he decided to take a few classes at one of the local colleges. He could have just chosen to spend his retirement lounging at home all day, but he’s chosen to spend his time learning new things and keeping his mind sharp, which is extremely admirable. Another admirable thing he’s started doing since retiring is volunteering at the local animal shelter. My parents and I view our pets as very much part of the family, so this is something that means a lot to us and is a great way to spend his time. His volunteering also lead to us adopting our newest family member, Zippy the dog, whom we all love very much despite his quirks.

Another thing I admire about my dad is his loyalty. He always makes it a point to stand by my mom even when I’m having an argument with her, which is something I complain about all the time. During the family schism which I mentioned previously, he made a point to call out people who were attacking my mom, even though that lead to him coming under fire himself. I deeply love and admire this quality of his, and it’s something I wish to emulate in my life.

These are just some of the things I love about my dad, but I’m not going to make this post any longer or it would turn into one of the overly long novels he loves to read. With that being said, Happy Father’s Day Dad! I love you loads, miss you and hope you have a wonderful day!