The Best Fathers

As the stars broke in the sky,
You sat and watched the fireflies on the back porch with me
And later made peanut butter brownies at the kitchen counter.

When my eyes began to droop,
You scared away the monsters under my bed and in my closet
Then later let me crawl into bed with you when I had a bad dream.

In the morning I woke you with a yell and a jump on top of you.
Shortly followed by wrestling and tickling and bouts of laughter
As the slowly rising sun forced the moon to retreat.

I watched you drive away to work day after day,
Knowing that when you returned
it would be with a smile,
Hugs,
Kisses,
Laughter,
And Joy.

You see it is not the work you do
Or the job you have,
It’s not how much money you make
Or how much you spend on us,
It doesn’t matter if you are tall
Or short
Or fat
Or thin.
It doesn’t matter if you are old
Or young
Or hip
Or cool
or a little bit behind the times.
The best fathers are remembered as
Peanut butter brownies,
Evening fires,
Pancakes,
Fireflies on the back porch,
Toast with jelly on it,
Wrestling in the morning,
Hugs,
Kisses,
Laughter,
And Love.

And you have it all.