As I’m sitting here, watching the Lakers try to stay alive against the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, it’s more than just watching a game. You see, I’m watching it with my Dad and it’s Father’s Day, but the holiday is almost irrelevant. This is just what we do. We’re homies.
- Some of my earliest memories include going to Utah Jazz games at the old Salt Palace with my Dad. Sports have been a huge part of our relationship since I can remember. Before I could even read, I knew who Magic Johnson and Karl Malone were. Before I knew what football even was, I knew that I was a Dallas Cowboys fan.
- I’ll never forget the tortuous hours spent hitting and fielding baseballs, especially in my first couple years of playing. I’ve always loved baseball, but I was terrible at it as a younger kid. I distinctly recall batting 8th and playing right field, living in constant fear of the ball coming my way – on offense or defense. By the time I was 11, however, I was playing on all-star teams and batting at the top of my team’s lineup. The only reason this ever happened was because my Dad taught me and coached me. Constantly. Most of the time when I didn’t even want him to.
- My Dad never went on a mission, so it was a big deal when I did. On that first terrifying day at the MTC, there’s one specific memory that stands out above all the rest. It’s not the hug I got from my Mom, which was very bittersweet. It’s not my first meal or meeting with my MTC district. It’s not the first time I saw the crappy little room in which I was to live for the next two months. It’s the fist bump I got from my Dad at the last moment before my family went through one door and I another. There was a lot of love and pride in that “rock,” and I’ll never forget the feeling.
- Just last year, we ham & egg’d it hardcore at the Father’s Day golf tournament at our club in Long Beach. Together we shot a net 55 and beat 60 other father/son teams for the title. We weren’t quite able to defend our title today, but we played pretty well and had a good time.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that my Dad has had an immeasurable impact on me in my life, and has been a part of some of my best times. My Mom is absolutely irreplaceable – I love her as much as anyone in my life, and I feel extremely lucky to count both of my parents as two of my closest friends, but the bond I have with my father is something that I just don’t have with anyone else. I know it makes me sound like a kid, but as a 25 year-old kid, I’m proud to say that my Dad is the man.
K
