A Time For Everything...Even Bacon! And Father Figures and Remembering My Dad.

Bacon
It disgusts me.  
The smell
The look.
What it is. 
What is left in the pan after it cooks.   
But I do admit that it doesn't taste so bad if I try to forget how bad it is for me. We never have bacon in the house.  Unless it is Father's Day or my husband's birthday.  We might even take some along when we go to a beach house or camping with friends. Once my husband tried to bring some home when I was pregnant with our firstborn.  I was so irrational an hormonal that I threw it out of the house onto the driveway and yelled "We will not live like this?!"  I think I might have mentioned something about how bacon is horrible for you and how it makes you fat and prone to heart attacks.  Poor guy was just trying to get a little bacon.  Then last year for Father's Day I made him Turkey Bacon.  I still have not lived that one down with his buddies that found out about it.  Until now.  Tomorrow is redemption day for me.  I figure if I can't have a redemption marathon then I might as well redeem myself on Father's Day.  I even got the thick cut kind.  And who knew that something this bad for you could be so expensive?!  

Yuck yuck yuck!  

He deserves it!  He's everything I've ever wanted in a husband and a father for our children.  The relationship he has with our kids is just what I would have wanted with my own father.  So, BACON it is!  Bring on the BACON!  


Father's Day
Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there!  My dad died when I was little but I've had several father figures in my life that have played different roles in my life.  The lack of a strong father figure in my life has always been something that makes my heart hurt.  I've always wanted that special father/daughter relationship that I see many of my friends have.  The kind of relationship where I feel protected, loved, and adored all wrapped into one.  A father that is hard on me but only because he believes in me.  A father that is part of my life and supports me in all that I do, even when he doesn't see eye-to-eye with me. Someone that is "like" me. I've always imagined the father that is present in my life and makes a point to let me know that I am loved and never alone in life.  


I may not have had this type of father/daughter relationship that I always imagined.  Not everyone does.  Relationships are not always perfect or how we think they should be but the important thing is that we have people in our life that are there for us and that love and support us.  I've had several people in my life that have filled a "fatherly role" and for them I am thankful.  They have not been perfect but they've served a purpose in my life and shown me love and support in their own way.  


My Grandfather--My dad's dad, My Grandfather Bardwell Odum.  This man was a strong and loving presence in my life.  Even all the way from Dallas, Texas.  Once my dad died (his son), my Grandfather made sure that he would be there to support us in ways that my father wouldn't be able to.  He was very hard on us kids.  Many times overly critical.  But he always always told me how proud he was of me and how much he loved me.  He encouraged me and taught me to understand the value of money.  He taught me how to save money and be wise with it.  And it is because of his encouragement and support that I went to college.  I loved my Grandpa so very very much.  I miss him.  I miss the summers we went to visit him.  Swimming in his pool.  How he taught me to whistle, catch fish, eat frog legs, and dive off a diving board.  I love how he signed me up for my first mile race when I was only 9 or 10 and he inspired us to run. He told us stories of our father, our family history, and stories about his life and our relatives from generations back. He died a little over a year ago and I miss him so much. I'm so thankful for the close relationship I had with him despite the times that we didn't get along. I love you Grandpa!  


My Father-in-Law--I may not have the closest relationship with my FIL but he is one of the most loving and supportive fathers I know.  He is ALWAYS there for us and he loves his family more than anything!  I know he is there for me no matter what!  He would do anything for us.  I'm so very grateful that my husband has had his father as an example throughout his life.  Someone to show him what is important in life...relationships and family!  Someone to model the value of giving time, being able change, working on a marriage to make it work, and being able to admit when he is wrong.  Thank you Pat!  You are such a gift!


My Dad Died Young
In honor of my own father, here is a picture I've shared before.  I don't have many pictures of him from when I was a baby and until he died but I did get some old pictures of him after my Grandpa died.  I was also sent a few of his running medals.  

Many of you are familiar with a few posts that I wrote about my dad.  The posts that explain how he died, some trials in his life, his love for running and how I feel connected to him when I run. They are pretty important to me so for those that are interested, I'll include them here again in honor of father's day:
Passion, Determination and the Will to Run
The Deepest Part of My Running Heart--Running for Him


I'll also include this poem that I wrote for him several years back.  


The Earth His Home
The earth he cherished.
The mountains, 
     His nutrients.
The land, 
    His fuel.
Nature enriched his life,
     With it
He filled his soul.
Now he enriches the earth
Under that 
      Quivering aspen tree.


The earth fell down upon him.
      Robbing him of his breath. 
Leaving his soul to dance
      Above Mount Buffalo and 
his body to rest beneath the roots of 
      the tree that he planted for us to climb.
The small brick, painted,
       DAVID
placed at the foot of the white wood.
      That was was where my father lived.


A father I was too young to know
      But am engrained with his spirit.
His breath fills my lungs,
      His power is in my legs,
His strength in my will.


The soft steps of my feet and the 
      rhythm of my breath
      are a call to him.
Running gracefully under the open sky that is
      unusual in beauty
The road that stretches out to touch the end 
     It is a connection
He runs beside me and tells me 
    He is proud.


It is I that continues his vision--
     that holds the earth so dear.
The mountains, my inspiration
     his music fills me up.  
His dream carries me with its passion.


He lives among nature
      The sun cresting on the mountain
His soul dancing, wandering free over
      Lake Dillon.


Just as earth he so loved,
     so too, earth took him.
Now he enriches the earth 
Under that
      Quivering aspen tree.  
               

Amanda