Mi Viejo

Mi Viejo: literally, means my old man.  In Uruguay, where I live almost all of my formative years, it is most often used as a term of endearment for ones dad. And that, of course, is how I use it. 

On Father's day, there are two amazing men that I want to blog about: my dad and, of course, the father of my children. But, this one is for my dad. I should probably start by saying that I am still a bit of a daddy's girl, even at the ripe age of 34! I've actually even mastered the art of the puppy dog eyes as an adult and they work even better now than they did when I was young!

My dad has done some pretty incredible things with his life. He's worked with youth in one capacity or another for nearly all of his adult life...everything from running Campus Life Clubs to youth pastoring at a Mennonite Bretheren church to running a camp at the beach in Uruguay to working with incarcerated kids here in Fresno and, for the past 10 years, in Chicago.

He's inspiring to many, especially since he did not have the ideal childhood, came from a broken home without a lot of the guidance and parenting a boy needs. But, he certainly determined early on that he was going to do things differently with his family. Some of my earliest childhood memories are of wrestling, playing dog pile and reading with my dad. One of my favorite childhood rituals with my dad was playing "answer man" with him at bed time. Since my daddy was an all-knowing fountain of knowledge, I figured he'd know the answer to anything. He'd let me ask him 2 or 3 questions every night. No topic was off limits. I know many of them were random, silly things, but I also remember many of them being about matters of the heart. Even as I got older and my defiant, ugly attitude reared it's head, I always knew my dad would be there for any pressing matter than may be on my mind. And now that I am a grown woman, he's still there for me, even though from afar. Even recently as we have pondered and prayed about another significant change in our family, he has committed to not only praying for us, but learning how he can better support us through the process. Pretty amazing, if you ask me.

My dad is also a passionate man. He's passionate about his faith, his family, and his work. Even though there were times I wished he was a little less passionate about some things, I was always secure in knowing he would always, always protect me. I never really appreciated that as a young girl because it never occurred to me that not every girl was as blessed as I am, but as I have gotten older and have seen some pretty awful things happen at the hands of some fathers, I realize how incredibly fortunate I am to have a dad who would literally give his life for mine. Every little girl should have that, don't you think?

You know what I love most about my dad? He'll cry when he reads this. Because he's just that kind of man. I love you, Daddy, and wish I could be closer to you today!