Today, we celebrate Father's day. It usually falls on the third Sunday of June in 55 countries and on other days elsewhere. Father's Day was first observed on June 19, 1910 through the efforts of Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington. In 1913, a bill was introduced in Congress to accord national recognition of Father's Day. In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers, designating the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. Finally, six years later, in 1972, President Nixon signed it into law making Father's Day a permanent national holiday.
So here goes to a much-loved, very-respected father of all... Happy Father's Day, may all your days be filled with happiness and you surrounded by children and grandchildren.
Now, to follow up on your last letter, you forgot to list the blessings of our parents as one of the most important possessions and blessings in life. I know my ramblings and writing about my feelings and what I'm going through is not easy for you and Mama. I know that it worries you a lot. But what can I do? I need to share it with those closest to me; I want to feel I am not alone carrying the burden all by myself. Selfishness? Maybe! But it's the selfishness of a child seeking comfort and support from the parents to help ease the load.
I was reading your recent letter and Tala peeked over my shoulder and asked what that was. When I told her it was a letter from Baba, she said "Oh, he's your pen pal! I hope Daddy will be my pen pal when I grow up." We are setting the trend for the father-daughter relationship to the offspring.
Moody commented the other day, in reference to your emails to him and birthday card, that "I am the only one among my friends that his grandpa calls him 'my friend'!" What a beautiful association between a grandfather and a grandson! Thank you for that... sincerely!
You can probably tell by now that I'm in a better shape than I sounded in my previous letter. That's the way of life... nothing remains the same--thank goodness for that! I will make sure to share my good days with you as well as my bad days. It won't be fair otherwise. I just hope and pray that my bad days do not cast a shadow over your days, but rather, bring my direction good thoughts and prayers from you and Mama.
At times, I lament on my life and what I have and have accomplished, and I couldn't be happier or more content. As you said, I did so well in my education and my career, and most of all in building a beautiful family the love and company of which is priceless! There were bumps along the road... many, all the time. But what is life without bumps? Those bumps only enriched my life further and turned me into who I am today. I wish I could have spared you some of the hurdle of those bumps but I guess that's inevitable for you are my parents.
These days, I'm enjoying the beautiful weather as much as I could. I took on gardening again after abandoning it for a couple of years. It is very therapeutic, relaxing, and beautiful. The fragrance of the flowers is all around; you just need to open your nostrils and be receptive. The chirping of the birds reminds me how it was the first thing Anas and Juju noticed when they came here and how Mama notices it when I talk to her on the phone from the garden. Things we take for granted and have become a background and part of our environment. Things we don't notice until an outsider to our environment comments on them. My home and my garden are heaven on Earth for me!
I always picture you with the hose in our house in Benghazi when I'm watering the flowers. I still remember the apricot tree that we used to gather "glue" from, and the grapevines that we used to climb on. Yesterday, I planted a hibiscus bush. It reminds me of the big tree we had in our house in Garden City; the one with the big red flowers and lots of ants. I will send you pictures once it blooms. The images here are from my garden. Click on any of the pictures to see more photos. Wish you were here to enjoy it with us!
Love and best wishes for a wonderful Father's Day!
!
So here goes to a much-loved, very-respected father of all... Happy Father's Day, may all your days be filled with happiness and you surrounded by children and grandchildren.
Now, to follow up on your last letter, you forgot to list the blessings of our parents as one of the most important possessions and blessings in life. I know my ramblings and writing about my feelings and what I'm going through is not easy for you and Mama. I know that it worries you a lot. But what can I do? I need to share it with those closest to me; I want to feel I am not alone carrying the burden all by myself. Selfishness? Maybe! But it's the selfishness of a child seeking comfort and support from the parents to help ease the load.
I was reading your recent letter and Tala peeked over my shoulder and asked what that was. When I told her it was a letter from Baba, she said "Oh, he's your pen pal! I hope Daddy will be my pen pal when I grow up." We are setting the trend for the father-daughter relationship to the offspring.
Moody commented the other day, in reference to your emails to him and birthday card, that "I am the only one among my friends that his grandpa calls him 'my friend'!" What a beautiful association between a grandfather and a grandson! Thank you for that... sincerely!
You can probably tell by now that I'm in a better shape than I sounded in my previous letter. That's the way of life... nothing remains the same--thank goodness for that! I will make sure to share my good days with you as well as my bad days. It won't be fair otherwise. I just hope and pray that my bad days do not cast a shadow over your days, but rather, bring my direction good thoughts and prayers from you and Mama.
At times, I lament on my life and what I have and have accomplished, and I couldn't be happier or more content. As you said, I did so well in my education and my career, and most of all in building a beautiful family the love and company of which is priceless! There were bumps along the road... many, all the time. But what is life without bumps? Those bumps only enriched my life further and turned me into who I am today. I wish I could have spared you some of the hurdle of those bumps but I guess that's inevitable for you are my parents.
Love and best wishes for a wonderful Father's Day!
!
I was telling Sol about the fact the Father's Day was first observed in 1910. And Ahmed said, "Howard Taft was the president then. He was from Ohio and was the heaviest president elected. He retired in 1930 due to poor health."
ReplyDeleteI ggogled Taft and sure enough, all that Moody mentioned was correct! Learning never stops and you'd be amazed at how much you could learn from your children!