Dear Dad,

Dear Dad,

Raising me was no easy task, especially with you growing up in such a traditional household, and I am anything but a conventional daughter. You were raised that a woman belonged in the home, and if that wasn't financially available, some work involved cooking, cleaning, sewing, or even just taking care of someone like a nurse. I know that being your first and only child, that was what you expected was going to happen when I got older, but I am so happy you were open to change.

When I was in school and wanted to start participating in sports, you let me enter whatever I wanted to try out. T-ball was a hit that eventually led into softball, where you were laughing at every practice and game as I got distracted out in the field by some flower or started playing in the dirt. When I joined the soccer team, you were about ready to pull the kid who kept pushing me into the ground yourself until you saw that I started pushing back. I saw the concern on your face turn into pride as you began to realize I wasn't fragile as you were raised to believe women were.

In middle school, I started to branch out even more into volleyball and basketball, and you made sure to never miss a single one of my games, always in the stands cheering me on. When I decided to join the wrestling team, you were very hesitant at first and even tried to talk me out of it; I was the only girl on the team and probably one of the few in the whole area that we would be competing against. You didn't like the idea of me wrestling and going up against boys, but you reluctantly agreed. When the coach started singling me out and not giving me the instruction that I needed, you were there to defend me, and you were there at my first meet when I got tossed down on the mat by a bigger boy from a different school and lost my first meet. You were ready to pull me out right then and there, but once you saw the smile on my face letting you know that I was ok and still was having fun, you finally relaxed. Again, I wasn't as fragile as you were raised to believe.

High school was a whole different ball game as my interests had switched. You were happy I joined color guard and loved every minute of it. This year-round sport not only kept me busy, but I was really good at it. Some after-school clubs, such as the speech team, let you finally relax as I wasn't getting into anything too "dangerous". Once it was time that we had vocational school available to us, you thought I was going to enter into cosmetology or culinary arts, which I did consider. Still, something about welding stuck out to me. I saw the dread in your face because you knew that once I got my mind stuck on something, it would happen whether you liked it or not. I know you were secretly hoping that I wouldn't get accepted and I would be attending cosmetology as my second choice program, but when I got that acceptance letter, you knew that it was going to happen. Even though you had your reservations, you supported me through those two years.

Even though you never thought that people of other races were beneath you, you were always raised that people should marry within their own races, so when I brought home someone with different skin color than my own, it was a bit of a shock to you. You were always polite and welcoming as you always are, but it was just something different than what you were led to believe as a child. Once you got to know him and saw how happy he made me and that he treats me well, you had no issues. Even though me and him aren't married, you claim him as your son-in-law, you two work on house projects together from both houses, and you guys even have weekly fishing trips together. Nothing is any different because of the color of his skin, and he is a welcome member of the family.

Now growing up and being on my own, I hear the way you talk about some of the ways you were raised and how I have shaped some new of your ideals. I am so happy with how you have grown as a person, and I feel so lucky to have a father with an open mind that was able to change as I was never going to fit the mold that your parents created for you. You proved that even someone as stubborn as yourself (where do you think I got it from?) could change their beliefs when necessary. Dad, I am so lucky to have you in my life and proud of how you have grown and changed over the years; I am glad to say that you are my role model in a way that you aren't perfect, but you are open to change where change is needed.

Love,

Your Daughter