This will be the first Father’s Day without my dad. I will celebrate him and keep his memory alive.
My dad loved the beach. Everything about it. Fishing, boating, lighthouse hunting, shelling, and sitting on the porch for hours looking at the waves, feeling the breeze and sun on his face.
When I was growing up, my dad would drive 16 hours from Toledo, Ohio to Emerald Isle, NC, while we all slept, to get to the beach. It was like the ocean was calling him or part of him that he could not wait to get back to. I feel the same way about the beach. So many family memories that I will cherish forever. Cleaning shrimp, playing games, watching movies, looking for military planes buzzing the beach, listening to music, searching for satellites in the stars, cooking flounder that he caught (rare but true), and ferry rides to remote islands searching for shells.
Now my dad is gone- we will continue the EI tradition that he started. Although it is the first time my dad will not go with us, he will have a place at the table. His rocker will be there next to Mom’s and we will fly the American Flag from the front porch as he loved to do every year. We will remember him with stories, laugh at all the fun we had and, I am sure, cry for our hearts sure do miss him.
I will see you Daddy in the waves and water. I will hear you through Anthony and Theodore’s laughter. I will feel you in the breeze and in the sun. You are here. Forever. Happy Father’s Day Daddy.
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