6.20.2004

cat in the cradle

good morning. i made it to 7:30am before my back decided to let me sleep no more. yesterday it was 5:30, so i'm making progress. if anyone knows of a long-lasting cure for arthritis pain (besides death), please let me know.

today is father's day (in case you live in a cave). punkin and i just got finished mixing up a batch of blueberry muffins for her daddy, who is still in bed. they smell so good. when kids are little, like punkin, mother's and father's day are a little ironic. we get the privilege of spending the day with her, yet she is high maintenance and wants to do things that aren't particularly fun for grown-up types. when she was a toddler, rabbit would entertain her on mother's day and i would do the same on father's day. but now, that would insult her. so, yesterday, she and i went to the mall and had a makeover at libbylu. that gave rabbit most of the day to do whatever it is rabbit does when we are not home.

last night at church, our pastor's dad came and gave the message. good thing he is a pastor, too, eh? it was pretty cool to see the man that our pastor talks so often about. after the praise and worship music, one of the soloists played a 6-string and sang cat in the cradle. that song brings me to tears on the first chord. when i was a kid, my dad worked a lot. i don't remember spending much time with him at all after age 7 or 8. life at home wasn't all that great, so in a way, i understand why he wouldn't want to be there much. my mother dealt with her illness by drinking and was often asleep on the couch when i came home from school. i used to be resentful of having to raise myself, but now i realize that it made me a stronger person.

anyway, back to cat in the cradle. since my folks got divorced a couple of years ago, my dad has made huge efforts to be a part of my and my daughter's life. the little kid in me resents this because he should have been there for me years ago. but the rational part of me is glad that he's here now. i know he did the best he could with what he had to work with, and i understand that more and more being a parent myself.

happy father's day dad, rabbit and my wonderful father-in-law!

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