Her Two Little Words: My Dad
One of the things I really enjoy about Cici having Vietnamese and Korean friends is that English is their common language. When one or more of them are with Cici and me, I get to see a side of my daughter that I don't get to see every day. Last night on the way home from school, one of the questions I asked in one of my musings some months ago was answered. The question on my mind was, what does Cici call me when she talks about me with her friends.
Cici and her friend were talking about something as we drove along. They were in the back seat, so I couldn't hear everything they were saying. A few words caught my ear, though. I didn't hear all the lead in words or the words that came after, but two words I heard loud and clear. My Dad. Cici said those words as naturally as though she has always said them. The context had something to do with why some students saw her a certain way, and I think it was about her homework. Maybe it is because my Dad ... , Cici said, and at that point my pride in what she had said interfered with my ability to hear.
Now you may not think this is a big deal, but it is for me. Cici didn't pause awkwardly to think about what to call me. She just said it - My Dad -and kept right on talking. No step-father or adopted-father or American-father. My Dad. Well, my long summer as a single Dad is almost over, but this has been a time that I bet Cici and I will never forget. We made a family together, just the two of us, and we didn't just survive. We learned more about each other, we laughed a lot, and we grew closer together. We even made plans for things she would like to take me to do with her in China.
I wonder how many other teenage girls and their fathers could spend the summer together and end up closer to each other than they were before the summer began? Interesting question.
Cici and her friend were talking about something as we drove along. They were in the back seat, so I couldn't hear everything they were saying. A few words caught my ear, though. I didn't hear all the lead in words or the words that came after, but two words I heard loud and clear. My Dad. Cici said those words as naturally as though she has always said them. The context had something to do with why some students saw her a certain way, and I think it was about her homework. Maybe it is because my Dad ... , Cici said, and at that point my pride in what she had said interfered with my ability to hear.
Now you may not think this is a big deal, but it is for me. Cici didn't pause awkwardly to think about what to call me. She just said it - My Dad -and kept right on talking. No step-father or adopted-father or American-father. My Dad. Well, my long summer as a single Dad is almost over, but this has been a time that I bet Cici and I will never forget. We made a family together, just the two of us, and we didn't just survive. We learned more about each other, we laughed a lot, and we grew closer together. We even made plans for things she would like to take me to do with her in China.
I wonder how many other teenage girls and their fathers could spend the summer together and end up closer to each other than they were before the summer began? Interesting question.
I told you it would take some time! I imagine your smile must have been round a bout as bright as the sun?
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I lit up the night sky, Smitty.
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Lee, now you know you are going to have to deflate that chest some before you will be able to go through any doors.
I know you have been waiting to hear those two little words that carry so much weight, " My Dad "
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You got that right.
Dad and daughter are studying chemistry together again tonight. We are multi-tasking but I got the better end of that deal. Her second task is doing the laundry. Mine is just pressing the keys on the keyboard.
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