Episode 84: Hi, Hungry, I'm Mr. Hardy: The Father's Day Special

"Boy, I bet I look so grown up/shirt tucked in my jeans/and now, after it all/I just really wanna call my dad."

                                                     -AJR, "Call My Dad"

    Hey man. I know Father's Day was a few days ago. But I can still publish a blog episode about it. 

  I may be calling myself Mr. Hardy, but this episode is to talk about the actual Mr. Hardy, my father.

   I'm fully aware that many people do not have a dad, or at least not an active one in their life. Or if they do, their father might be a horrible person and a source of fear instead of love. I've heard stories from coworkers about their dads who either left or abused them, and I was stuck in those situations feeling weird because of my inability to relate - my dad is and always has been a really great guy. 

   My dad has always been there for me and I've never felt unloved by him. He's taught me to love my Heavenly Father above all, as well as to love my fellow man.

  I'm sure there have been times where I've come across as ungrateful for all that my dad's done and sacrificed for me. I'm sorry, dad; thank you and I love you.

   I owe a large part of my sense of humor to my dad, as well as my faith. I've heard tons and tons of times throughout my life that I look a lot like my dad. I've also noticed that, in recent years, people are now starting to say that I even sound like him. Some people would be embarrassed, or even saddened or angered to hear that they resemble their father - but I'm glad that I do. If I remind people of my dad in even the slightest way, that means I'm doing a pretty good job.

   I also owe my huge passion for superheroes to my dad. I got into them because of his childhood love of Batman and me getting his old comic books. Though my passion for superheroes now far exceeds my dad's, I likely wouldn't have that factor in my life if it weren't for my dad (and Adam West). 

   My dad's dad died when he was 9 years old, so my dad didn't have his dad for much of his growing up. Thankfully his mom was an amazing mother to him (and an amazing grandmother to me). I do wish I had gotten to meet my paternal grandpa, but I do get to see pictures of him, stuff he owned, and hear stories about him from my dad and his siblings.

   My maternal grandpa, though, is very cool. I oft refer to him as "my favorite old person". Grandpa, if you're reading this, I love you, and thank you for being a great dad to my mom and aunt and a great grandpa to me, my sister, and our cousins. 

    

   My point is similar to the one I had in my Mother's Day blog. If you're going to have a kid, be a dad, not just a father. There's a difference. Read my Mother's Day blog to get an idea of what I mean by that if you can't infer it. 

   I'm incredibly sorry for the people who have bad or no relationships with their fathers. But dad, thank you for not being one of those fathers. Thank you for being a dad, and not just a dad, but a really great one. Love you.

Anyway, see you next week!