Happy Father's Day to you, my dad 父亲节快乐

仇双杰

时光易老，人生无常。趁著节日，对你的父亲，还有你的母亲道一声感谢，说一句节日快乐吧。让我们一起阅读，换位思考，感悟一位女儿眼中的父亲吧。

[海 词 积 累]

1.polarize v. （使）两极化;截然对立

2.duel n. 决斗;斗争

3.escort v. 护送

4.snotty adj. 傲慢的

5.evaporate v. （使）蒸发;（逐渐）消失

6.kohlrabi n. 甘蓝

Dear Dad， today I was at the shopping mall and I spent a lot of time reading the Fathers Day cards. They all had a special message that in some way or another reflected how I feel about you. Yet as I selected and read， and selected and read again， it occurred to me that not a single card said what I really want to say to you.

Youll soon be 84 years old， Dad， and you and I will have had 55 Fathers Days together. I havent always been with you on Fathers Day nor have I been with you for all of your birthdays. It wasnt because I didnt want to be with you. Ive always been with you in my heart but sometimes life gets in the way. You know， Dad， there was a time when we were not only separated by the generation gap but completely polarized by it. You stood on one side of the great divide and I on the other， father and daughter split apart by age and experience， opinions， hairstyles， cosmetics， clothing， music， curfews， and boys.

The father⁃daughter duel of ‘54 shifted into high gear when you taught me to drive the old Dodge and I decided I would drive the ‘54 Chevy whether you liked it or not. The police officer who escorted me home after you reported the Chevy stolen late one evening was too young to understand father⁃daughter politics and too old to have much tolerance for a snotty 16 year old. You were so decent about it， Dad， and I think that was probably what made it the worst night of my life.

Our relationship improved immensely when I married a man you liked， and things really turned around when we began making babies right and left. We didnt have a television set， you know， and we had to entertain ourselves somehow. I didnt know what to expect of you and Mom as grandparents but I didnt have to wait long to find out. Those babies adored you then just as they adore you now. When I see you with all your grandchildren， I know youve given them the finest gift a grandparent can give.Youve given them yourself. Somewhere along the line， the generation gap evaporated. Age separates us now and little else. We agree on most everything， perhaps because weve learned there isnt much worth disagreeing about. Ive been happily drifting for a lot of years， Dad， and I didnt see you getting older. I suppose I saw us and our relationship as aging together， rather like a fine wine. Numbers never seemed important.

But the oddest thing happened last week. I was at a stop sign and I watched as you turned the corner in your car. It didnt immediately occur to me that it was you because the man driving looked so elderly and weak behind the wheel of that huge car. It was rather like a slap in the face delivered from out of nowhere. Perhaps I saw your age for the first time that day. Or maybe I saw my own.

Fifty years ago this spring we planted kohlrabi together in a garden in Charles City， Iowa. I didnt know then that I would remember that day for the rest of my life. This week， well plant kohlrabi together again， perhaps for the last time but I hope not. I dont understand why planting kohlrabi with you is so important to me but it is. And the funny thing about it is， well， I dont know quite how to tell you this， Dad...I dont even like kohlrabi...but I like planting it with you. I guess what Im trying to say， Dad， is what every son and daughter wants to say to their Dad today.

Honoring a father on Fathers Day is about more than a dad who brings home a paycheck， shares a dinner table， and attends school functions， graduations， and weddings. It isnt even so much about kohlrabi， ‘54 Chevy， and fly?fishing. Its more about unconditionally loving children who are snotty and stubborn， who know everything and wont listen to anyone. Its about respect and sharing and acceptance and tolerance and giving and taking. Its about loving someone more than words can say， and its wishing that it never had to end.

I love you， Dad.

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With Fathers Day coming，what are you going to do with your parents？