Father's Day

The Kings and our family after Jackson's Dedication

The siblings after Jackson's Dedication

Jackson's Father's Day picture.

As my first Father's Day, as a Father, approaches, there are many things running through my mind.

Father's Day, for the past 14 years, has been a day of reflection for me. For a while after Dad died, it was a very rough day that I just tried to get through, but the last 10 years we have begun to celebrate Father's Day, and what Dad meant to us. Justin and I get together every year on Father's Day and enjoy the cheapest beer we can find. Dad drank cheap beer..why..I am not sure. Even later in life when Dad could afford better beer, he jumped up to Keystone. So, the beer of past has been Slitz, or PBR. Dad was Hamm's drinker, and alas, QT now carries Hamm's, for the price of water. ha ha. the drinking of cheap beer has been our way to celebrate big events that Dad would have been gleaming with joy. My wedding day, I gathered all my wedding party and we downed a Slitz. Justin brought in a case of Hamm's when Jackson was born. We enjoy Hamm's when we bought Floyd's, and one day, I will enjoy a Hamm's with Jackson.

Father's day has lacked a lot of tradition for me. The one tradition that has held up all these year, minus one year, is that I call Butch Miller. I grew up with his daughter, Michelle. Ben Newcomb and I would be hours at their house. I spent almost as much time with the Millers as I did my own family. Butch was the closet thing to a second Father that a kid could ask for. (The Miller household is the site of the infamous treadmill experience, for those who know).

After Dad died I had 2 big role Models to help guide me, John King and my Brother. But, Butch was a Father figure to me. Someone that I could turn to for Fatherly advice, someone that if I screwed up, he would be upset with me, just as Pops would have been. As I sit on my back porch with a Hamm's in hand, I can look back and thank how blessed I was to have Butch in my life. Many kids are looking to have one Father figure in their life. I not only had an amazing Father, but blessed enough to have Butch, as another Father figure for me.

Life seems to run full circle. Butch owned Camdenton Glass for as long as I knew him. And when we bought Floyd's Glass, he was one of the first people that I called. We made a trip down to the Lake to pick his brain. It was nice seeing his approval, and just how proud he was of me. Even at 30 years old, it is nice to get approval.

This Father's Day will start out differently for me. I AM a Father, and it already has a different feeling starting out. Granted, I will spend from 8:00 am, until 8:00pm on the soccer field. But I tell you, besides spending time with my family, there is no other place that I would rather be. Soccer was my Dad and I's thing, that is what we did together, so to spend all day teaching the game that he taught me...Happy Father's Day to Me, and Pops!

Tomorrow seems to make it official that I am a Father, I have a day now. almost 7 weeks in, and for some reason Sunday, makes it official to me.

Sunday Night Justin will come over to enjoy, or choke down, a few Hamm's, and it is the most excited I have been about it in many years. We both are Father's now, it seems more of a celebration this year. 2 Father's, 2 Brothers, 2 Sons, getting together drinking a beer: Just seems very fitting for Father's Day: And what an honor and joy it will be to spend it with Justin.

Happy Father's Day to all the Father's out there. All the Mother's who have be Daddy as well. And of course, to all the sons, who have lost their Father. Tomorrow is a special day, it just took me 30 years to realize just how special it is.

Keep on Keeping on...mrrr.