Let Me Tell You About a Great Man

Father's Day the past few years has been a little rough. Due to several situations, I have made the choice to not have my father in my life. I did not do this out of spite or hate. I did this to protect my family.

That being said, for the past 11 plus years, I have been blessed with a fabulous father-in-law. He is a loving, gentle man. He is the kind of man that you can't help but adore when you meet him. He is one to remember when he leaves a room. Not because he is the loud funny type. He IS funny, and can tickle himself when telling a good story. People remember him because he is the one who will look you in the eye, act as if he has known you his whole life. He will touch your arm, take your hand, or pat your back while giving you his handsome smile. Some may say he is a bit of a flirt....that is part of his charm. He is harmless in the flirting, because you see, he is madly in love with my mother-in-law. He has always been the man to let the ladies sit and visit while he cleaned up after dinner. He has always been the man to refill your iced tea, make you a mean bloody Mary, or get you a cup of coffee. He is the guy that everyone loves and respects. Truth. My children simply adore time with Poppy. Always have. He raised two wonderful sons who have nothing but adoration and love for him. I, his daughter-in-law, am simply smitten with him.

As I have said in previous posts, Poppy has cancer. He has gone through chemo many times, has had surgeries, he has been so very sick. Recently, he has decided to stop chemo. Quality of life type of thing. So this Father's Day was so very important. This is so hard to type....but this will more than likely be his last. Hospice starts this week and he is simply tired. The children are aware of this and carefully picked out their cards for him, as did Chad and myself. Yesterday we hugged him a little longer, and enjoyed the little things. We talked about how it was 10 years ago that we gave Poppy a Father's Day card that said Happy Father's Day Grandpa. You see, he wasn't a grandpa yet. It was our way of telling him that he was going to be. Now THAT was a Father's Day.

So, there is the little insight into who Poppy is. He is one of the best men....best PEOPLE... I have ever known. I know I am not alone in saying this.

Please keep the family in your thoughts and prayers.

Look at that smile.