Happy Father’s Day
Letter from the editor
As Father’s Day rolls around each year, I half jokingly remind my kids that they should thank me for getting them a good one. Bob was young by today’s standards when our son Jamie was born, becoming a father at 25 years old. It’s amazing that another 25 years have since passed and our babies are all grown up.
I often wish I could relive those first few blissful days after our son was born when we thought we had a healthy baby boy. It was only a matter of time before the cascade of health problems began to fall in our laps as Jamie was faced with a hole in his heart, elevated white blood cell counts, and food allergies, just to name a few. These were challenging, however the one that changed everything was when we learned that our first born had autism.
Everyone has their own idea of what fatherhood will be like based on their own unique life experiences. When a child is diagnosed with a disability or serious illness though, all of those plans and expectations fly right out the window. You’re faced with tough decisions and a lifetime of challenges.
Bob took it all in stride, though, attending countless doctor and therapy appointments. Our twin girls came along shortly after and we began lovingly calling them our “Irish triplets.” Our twin daughters were bundles of healthy joy as well as two perfect companions for Jamie. They loved to play with Jamie and direct him around every chance they could.
As the years passed, the girls surpassed our son developmentally by early grade school. Each year, the gap continued to widen as sports and group activities were not options for our son. He did not have the language or skills to participate and unfortunately, this was before special needs programs were readily available in our area.
Throughout this time, Bob continued to work hard for our family, dedicating every evening to spending time with his children. He did his best to attend every dance recital or school play and tried to divide his time equally between our three children. However, it became increasingly difficult as our son’s behavior became harder to manage. Jamie had an increasingly harder time following directions and regulating his emotions. Meltdowns began to plague many of our family outings and would upset everyone.. Nothing could have prepared us for the challenges that this would bring yet no matter how hard it got, Bob showed up day and night giving his all to his children. He sacrificed quite a bit and hardly complained.
This is our version of “hard” and we know that every family has their own story. We admire the fathers who continue to show up day in and day out, who work hard to provide for their families, and who never back down from life’s fair share of challenges.
We see you, love you and appreciate you. Happy Father’s Day!
Peace
& Love,
Cindy
