Early Morning Reflection on a Father's Day: Bridges Over Troubled Waters

Happy Father's Day to all the Super-Dads!

Super-Dad Harry and Sunday post-church mayhem, Manning style :)
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When you're weary
Feeling small
When tears are in your eyes
I will dry them all

I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down . . . .

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down. . . . . .

from Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Waters"

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Today I'm reflecting on fathers. . . . and not just any fathers, but the sho' nuff fathers. You know--the real men who stand tall with squared shoulders, who freely own and walk into their purpose as daddies, who unwaveringly accept the awesomeness of their responsibilities, and who love with all their might. Here's to those who accept the uphill fights, the selfless sacrifices, the exhaustion, and yes, the pressures, of being a true patriarch. The real ones who give their all to help grow boys into confident men and girls into self-accepting women. . . . .it's no easy task. All too often I sit and talk to patients only to learn of how some kink in the family tree robbed them of a relationship of their father, and worse, their ability to father their own children. It makes me remember to be thankful.

Okay, so I get confused of how that saying goes: "Anyone can be a daddy, but it takes a real man to be a father" (or is it the other way around?) I get it all mixed up because I think I'm not fully clear on which trumps the other. . . .but I digress . . .

father
daddy
dad
grandpa
padre
pa pa
papa
pops
papi
saba
baba
opa
fill in the blank

Regardless of what you call them, here's to them all, living on earth or simply in our hearts--and here's to the men who helped make them the men they are.

Yep, so today I'm reflecting on and celebrating real fathers. . . .those who aren't just there for the glory. . .but those who've been there every single day to help write the story. . . .working, trying, praying, giving, leading, loving, failing but then dusting off and trying again and again and again. . . . .

. . . . thank you for being our bridges over troubled waters. . . . even when it's exhausting. . .

Ode to my Harry. . . the true patriarch of Team Manning and the man who had me at "Ohio". . . . . This is the song that always makes me think of Harry and how glad I am to be raising these man-children with him!

PaPa "talks" with Zachy two years ago on a visit to Atlanta. . . .

. . . . .and just this morning with the boys during their annual "Camp PaPa" trip to California (below, courtesy of multi-media textmessaging)

Come on. . . .what sixty-something year old man would agree to take two wild and stinky boys 2,000+ miles away from home for three whole weeks without their mother? My dad, that's who! (No, I'm not kidding!)

Daddy and I danced to the Eva Cassidy version of "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" (below) on my wedding day. Every time I hear her haunting rendition, I think of my dad and how fortunate I am to be his daughter (which always leads to the ugly cry.) This song has been covered so many times by so many amazing people, but whenever I play it on my mental iPod, this is the version I hear. Maybe it will make you think of somebody special, too. Enjoy--but beware of the ugly cry!

What song (and version of it) makes you think of your dad or someone else special? Do tell. . . . :)