‘One More Day’ … with Dad

It’s another Father’s Day without Dad. We lost him to cancer when he was 51, and so every time I hear Diamond Rio’s “One More Day,” it makes me ache for that kind, easy-going, quiet, simple man who taught Sunday School, was a deacon in our church, and chased us kids around the yard as pretended to be the big, bad wolf from the Hansel and Gretel fairy tale.

His was not the life of a high-powered CEO or politician or world traveler but he was the world to us. The oldest of five children growing up in Amelia County, he was a child of the Depression who quit school after eighth grade to help support his financially-strapped family before enlisting in the Navy as a teenager to serve during World War II. Trained as a gunner on the USS Wisconsin, he traveled to exotic places around the South Pacific while the world was at war and, when it ended, he came home to Virginia, settled in Richmond, married, and raised three daughters.

One of his joys throughout the years was traveling to southwest Virginia to attend the Galax Fiddler’s Convention to listen to hours of bluegrass music, a genre I didn’t fully appreciate until long after he was gone.

His other joy was camping in Shenandoah National Park. We could not afford pricey vacations so our parents took us to the mountains from the time we were very young where Dad was a naturalist before it became fashionable. He was mindful of those protected surroundings, teaching his girls to leave the flowers for others to enjoy, pack out our trash, be respectful of the animals who lived there, and most of all to enjoy the beauty that is Virginia.

Diamond Rio’s song sharpens the realization that if I could have just one more day with him, it would be sitting around a campfire in Shenandoah National Park as the sun lowered behind the Appalachians … one more time.

‘One More Day’ … with Dad

By Lynn R. Mitchell

It’s Father’s Day and, once again, my dad is not here. He passed away in 1975 at the age of 51. There’s a country song by Diamond Rio called “One More Day,” and every time I hear that song I think of him. It’s been years since cancer took him away and, yet, a word or song or thought can bring me to my knees as I continue to feel the loss of a man I admired and respected and miss to this day.

He was a simple man, the oldest of five children growing up in Amelia County, Virginia … a child of the Depression who quit school after eighth grade to help support his financially-strapped family.

Happy Father’s Day to the dads at LynnRMitchell.com

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Sending Happy Father’s Day wishes to the dads including guest posters who have been part of LynnRMitchell.com with thanks for all they do throughout the year.  A special shout-out to our Managing Editor Kurt Michael. It wouldn’t be possible without all of you!

George W. Bush named Father of the Year

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Former President George W. Bush was presented with the Father of the Year award Thursday by daughter Barbara at the 74th National Father’s Day awards luncheon held in New York City (see video). The fundraiser brought in $1.3 million for Save the Children’s U.S. programs.

In his usual self-deprecation style, Bush joked about himself, was thankful to be recognized, and credited fatherhood for helping him become sober after drinking in his younger years.

“As a matter of fact, I don’t think I would’ve quit drinking had it not been for being a dad. You see what happened to me was alcohol was becoming a love and it was beginning to crowd out my affections for the most important love if you’re a dad and that’s loving your little girls. So for me, fatherhood meant sobriety from 1986 on,” he noted.

“I also learned of unconditional love,” he added, becoming emotional. “It’s one of the greatest gifts a dad can give a child, which leads me to a fitting reading I’m about to do and a practical one. Fitting because I’m about to read from the book that I wrote about my dad. Practical because I’m retired and I hope people buy it. It may be a little confusing for some up here to know that not only can I read, I can write,” he added.