Superhero, that's what he really is... at least to me.

He is very subtle with his superhero status

In honor of Father's Day, I am going to share some information with you that many may not know.  Now please, don't go contacting CNN or MSNBC because he likes his privacy and he has managed to keep his identity a secret for the past sixty-three years, so let's just keep this between us, okay?  Okay.

My daddy is a superhero.  It's true.  Now I know that many children believe their father to be larger than life and able to conquer anything but mine truly is and I have proof.  He grew up in an impoverished Baltimore neighborhood where siblings were running a muck and parents were doing the best they could.  He raised his brothers and sister, with the help of his Nana and Aunt Mary, all the while holding an outstanding GPA all through school.  He was accepted to Johns Hopkins University when he was just a junior in high school!  Daddy went on to actually attend Drexel University where he met the love of his life and married her - two days after her graduation and one day after her birthday.

They went on to live a glorious life together.  They had two children, a son and a daughter, whom they adore and lavished with every possible gift, both tangible and intangible.  Nothing was denied them by their parents and yet, they grew up appreciative.  The kids learned, from their parents' example, that everything is precious and important and to be grateful for it all.  There were times when moths flew out of wallets but the children never knew - all they knew was that their home was perfect.

Time moves on and Daddy becomes a very successful business man - often holding titles such superhero titles as CEO, CFO, VP of Finance... but his favorite title was "Daddy".  He would take his son and daughter to work with him if he had to get things done over the weekend.  There, a wonderland of great proportions would open up as the kids were allowed to play freely where no other child had played before... and probably hasn't played since.  During this time, unbeknownst to the children, he was earning his Bachelors degree... and then his Masters degree - both with a 4.0 GPA.

Posing with some of his adoring fans

While Daddy's powers and abilities are limitless, he does have one weakness - stupidity.  Don't be confused, there is a definite difference between stupidity and ignorance.  One means you don't know any better, whilst the other means you do but you simply don't care... and that is the one that will turn my mild mannered and loving Daddy into a raging menace.  Thank goodness, the son tested this theory first so the daughter could side step those actions - although, she had plenty of her own discoveries which caused Daddy's blood pressure to go up and change his face to the most amazing shades of red.  There was always a warning - which showed how much he cared - and if you knew this warning, then you knew it wasn't something that was detrimental... this warning, this one single thing that you had to hear first was one simple word.  That word was "swell"... and if you heard that, you knew it was the situation and not you that he was upset with and that made all the difference.

Through the years, Daddy's superhero powers grew.  While most children are reaching adulthood and learn that their parents are mere mortals, I simply learned that mine was larger than life.  He has beaten the odds on everything... even amazing a team of doctors a few years ago with his superhuman strength, will and determination.  If asked, he will tell you that he wasn't sick (and that is how we refer to that scary moment in history - "that time when Daddy wasn't sick") but the cardiologist who performed his emergency triply bypass open heart surgery would claim otherwise.  His superhero status was cemented when he recovered three times faster than anyone they had ever witnessed.  He did so with a single pain pill, on the third day of recovery.  Yes, my daddy is honestly a superhero... there is no denying it.

So on this day, I wanted to share my Daddy with y'all.  If you see a teddy bear of a man, flying through the sky like Superman but singing the William Tell Overture and hollering "Hi-ho Silver, away", don't be alarmed.  That's just my superhero, making his rounds.

I love you, Daddy.  Happy Father's Day - from your Sweet Pea.