I don’t normally write every week, but I needed to write this. As you all know Sunday, June 19, was Father’s Day and I hope that all Dads, soon-to-be Dads and Dads up in heaven had a great day!

When we celebrated Mother’s Day, I wrote my column about my Mom and how much she means to me. I needed to write this column because my step-dad deserves a column just about him as much as my mom does. Since we lost my dad twenty years ago, Father’s Day is not an easy day for my brother and me. Although there isn’t a day or hour that goes by that we don’t think about or miss our dad, we are blessed to have a step-dad that has taken great care of us and our mom.

Losing our dad 20 years ago was devastating to us as a family, and even the community, but we have all learned how to get through each day without him. We have all found ways to remember him and live our lives in honor of him. He will forever be missed, but never forgotten. The things I miss most about my dad are his smile and his laugh. I miss the smell of his cologne lingering in the house after he left for work. I miss him telling jokes and making other people laugh. I miss the simple things about him, I wish he could have been around while I was growing up so my Mom didn’t have to deal with me alone. (Sorry about that, Mom.) I wish that he could have been with me for the big and small things that have happened in the last twenty years. Since we can’t change the past, we have to look for all of the blessings that God gives us. Sometimes it is hard to find the good things in a tragic event like losing a loved one, but there is always something to be learned.

Losing your dad at a young age is something no one can truly understand unless they have been through it. One of the best things about Ron is that he has never tried to replace our dad. Ron is so respectful of my dad and his legacy and all of the things he left behind of this earth. We couldn’t ask for a better person to share our lives with than Ron.

Ron, thank you for loving John and I as if we are your own children. Thank you for taking such great care of our mom. Thank you for taking such great care of the farm. Thank you for always being there for us when we need to chat. Thank you for always being so calm and collected when I get excited about things and tend to blow things out of proportion. Thank you for always telling me that you love me. Thank you for always hugging me. Thank you for always supporting me even if you don’t agree with everything I say or do. Thank you for letting me be silly and loud! Thank you for loving us just the way we are. Thank you for always sending me a Valentine’s Day card. Thank you for always sending me a card for my birthday; you have no idea how much that means to me. Thank you for everything you do, whether it’s for me, John or Mom. We are so lucky to have you in our lives and celebrating Father’s Day isn’t enough to express how much you mean to all of us. We love you.