I was thinking about my dad this morning and I was like, “I spoke to him yesterday. Why am I thinking about him today?”

Then I remembered that Father’s Day is just around the corner (this Sunday).

I love these two pictures very much. The way I hugged my dad in the first picture and the way my dad hugged me in the second picture melts down my heart.

You know, the second picture was taken this past April when I was in Addis Ababa to spend Easter with my parents. I spent many hours talking to my dad in this small garden.

“Go and bring nail clipper and clip my toe nails,” my dad orders me pointing his index finger to the house as if to say, “That is where you find the clipper.” My dad hates finger and toe nails with passion. The other thing he hates is gaining weight. Yeah, when he saw me in April, he said, “So, you put on some weight, am I right?”

Hard to admit but I said, “I’m working on it dad. Next time you see me, you won’t see any extra stuff.” Wishing and praying in my heart that that will come true.

So, as I clip my dad’s toe nails, I start asking him questions. Every discussion with my dad comes down to the importance of marriage. “Marriage is something sacred. I know you’re a very opinionated person and you should be very careful when you talk to your husband.”

“Why?” I quickly ask.

“So, you won’t make him angry,” as if to say “Duh!”

“Why should he be angry with my opinion?” I calmly ask.

“Here we go again. Just listen to me. You have to be a kind of woman your husband wants to have,” he retorts with a tone that says, “Don’t ask me anymore questions. Just listen.”

Again, I calmly say, “But I want my husband to be a kind of man I want him to be too dad. It is not fair that you don’t speak from my side too.” – (My husband enjoys this story)

Yeah, this was our usual morning discussion when I was there this past April. I enjoyed every bit of it. My mom says, “Okay, I let you two argue,” and she leaves us in the garden.

My dad was the one who taught me to love reading and writing, not by preaching to me but modeling it for me. Growing up, my dad always used to say, “Remember, the best treasure you can have in this life is knowledge and unless you read, you can’t have knowledge.”

And now he says, “I know you read a lot and you may have different ideas than mine but just listen to me quietly.” He sometimes gets annoyed with my endless questions.

Other than reading, my dad is the one who taught me to make dictionary my best friend. Oh, yes, since I was seventh grade, dictionary has been my best friend wherever I go.

Well, Happy early Father’s Day to my dad I love and treasure to have and to all fathers out there! ///