Uncles Day

Fathers Day, a day to celebrate fatherhood, a day to remember your father, a day to celebrate all men; fathers, uncles and alike…

 

My sister’s husband passed away when my nieces where young, so they never really celebrated Fathers Day, but rather Uncles Day. It was and is a way for them to show their appreciation for the man that is in their life, me.

 

Uncles Day started out as a joke, I would tell them for every Hallmark holiday that it was Uncles Day, so I would have 3 or 4 a year, but as they got older they figured out that Uncles Day seemed to happen way to often, so they decided Fathers Day was the official Uncles Day, so now we celebrate it once a year.

 

It’s a very humbling experience for me, and I must admit I feel guilty that they do not have a father to celebrate it with. But I also feel very privileged that they are part of my life, that I can experience there moments with them, and feel that I have a part in their growing up.

 

All of them are their teens, ranging from 19 to 16, and I have had the honor of watching them grow up to be wonderful young adults, I have seen the good, the bad and the ugly. I have seen them cry over lost loved ones and over the joys of life. I have experienced the tantrums and moments of total self giving. I have swelled with pride and disappointment. I have watched them grow, seen them push themselves and watched them standing still.

 

The joys I have received from being their Uncle and sometimes their stand in father has been overwhelming. God has blessed me with three miracles of life, He has graced me with the gift of life and the ups and downs of parenting, God has truly given me more then I deserve.

 

I miss my brother in law, and I am sad that he is not here to see his girls grow up, I morn for my nieces that they do not know their father, but in truth I am also glad, because I have gained so much, I have learned to love in ways I never thought I could, I have become more then I thought possible…

 

God has truly blessed me; in truth everyday is Uncles Day for me…

 

 I love my nieces and I owe them a lot for what they have given me over the years, my life is good, and lot of it has to do with them.

 

So to Katie, Molly and Hanna I say I Love You, and may God always watch over you and protect you…

 

God Bless

Uncle Paul