Father's Day

A Happy belated Father's Day to any father's reading this post!

Father's Day : A day set aside to celebrate the Dads, Step-Dads, and Father figures in our lives. A wonderful day , indeed! However, for some of us, Father's day brings saddness as well. When you have lost your Dad, there is an emptiness that comes with this day. I have had a deep emptiness for 10 years now. Well, let me say that I "had" a great emptiness on this day for a long time. Everyone else was buying their Dad's gifts, cards, talking about the day, making plans for cookouts and special parties...and I was dreaming about what I would be doing on this day. Not having your Dad on Father's Day plain stinks! Just like not having your Mom on Mother's Day does. While I still experience a great saddness with Dad being gone...since I have met and married Matt..I have found that I can now celebrate this day with great joy! Matt is not "My" father but he is an amazing Father to our two wonderful sons! I can celebrate along with them, this awesome Dad that God placed in all of our lives! What a blessing!! It is incredible to me, the ways that God takes a sad and desperate situation , and brings about good and joy within it. He truly does take any bad thing and turn it around for our good. What an awesome God! And this brings me to another joyful experience on Father's Day. Even before I met Matt...God filled me with such joy and peace during this day. He reminded me (and still does) that although I had a Father here and he loved me deeply and I loved him...that God is my true Father! He is Papa to us all and though I will always miss my Dad...i can celebrate God's love for me as my ultimate Daddy!! Amazing.

And lastly...it took me a while to realize this. But , this year I have come to accept and celebrate the gift that my Mom's husband, Dave, is in my life. He is not my real Father..and I am not his real daughter...but...we are both in that place now. He lost his daughter just a few years ago. We both have a great void in our lives. And now, God has put us into that void for each other. I will never get my Dad back in this life..and he will never get his daughter back in this life. But we have each other! We can continue on in this life together. As "daughter" and "Dad". He has been in our lives for 5 years...and we have always gotten along pretty well , especially in more recent years. But, I still held him at bay, not letting him or anyone in the spot my Dad once was. I have too..i have to let go of that. My Dad, Robert Christopher Lemmon, Jr. will always be my Father. He will always hold a special place in my heart and soul that NO ONE could ever fill. I will always miss him, especially on Father's Day. But, I have my heavenly Father, Creator, God who loves me unending and will never leave me...I have Matt, my husband and Father to my children to celebrate and love...and I have Dave Merrill...my "step father" to make memories with and share in this life with as my "dad". Wow...God surely pours out his favor and love on his children!!! I am so thankful! :O)