Ron on Father's Day

Father's Day is a little different than Mother's Day. For some reason, people wax eloquent on Mother's Day about all the sacrifices, loving care, etc. that our mothers give us (all true), but we can't quite figure out how to show our appreciation for all that our fathers do, because of the stoic traits that men are supposed to display. Usually, our ward gives the mothers a Gerbera daisy for Mother's Day, and people give talks about what they learned from their mothers. Sometimes there have been talks about fathers, but more often, the subjects are generic, and in the past, have given the fathers a nice chocolate bar. That didn't happen today, but at least our Sunday School teacher baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies, which both mothers and fathers enjoyed while she taught the lesson on the second coming. We munched as we read scriptures on all of the difficult things that will occur and are occurring in the time before that, and appreciated that if we are on the path, we will be standing in good places. Eating a chocolate chip cookie provided a comfort that helped us look realistically at the world around us, and evaluate our place in it with a thankfulness for the comparatively safe place where we live. We sometimes have very strong winds, but a tornado is rare. Rain, hail, and snow come from the sky, in various degrees, depending on the year. This year, we had an abundance of snow, and the mountains are still showing lots. In places around us, people are still enjoying snow sports. Flooding is taking place south of us, but we are not affected. In southeastern Idaho, we have four seasons (this year, it's debatable - we skipped much of spring), but this fact leads us to an appreciation for rebirth in the spring.

But I digress. Back to fathers, and Ron, in particular. He was father of four children, of whom three daughters who are still living, so he has borne the heartbreak of losing a son. He has been stepfather to my five children, caring for them, trying to help them when he could, and caring for the two youngest in our home until they left for school or other events in their lives. He has been generous and gracious and kind to all eight children. The example he sets in striving to be even-tempered is a good one for my volatile family - (that means me, particularly). Having Father's Day to celebrate the fathers in our lives is a very good idea.