With everybody's hectic schedules today, it's not always easy to remember to take the time to tell the people we love that we appreciate them. Though Father's Day may be a Hallmark holiday, it gives us the opportunity to stop what we are doing and devote time to Dad.
Today, Bristol-Warren Patch staff have taken the time to share fond memories with Dad, and we hope you will do the same. Leave your Father's Day shout-outs and memories in the comments section.
Sara Bagwell, Editor -- To my dad, Randell Bagwell, Father's Day, and every other holiday is "just another day". He'll add, "It aint no big deal," in his Texas twang (he still has it though he's lived in Bristol for 22 years now) and go on with his day by mowing the lawn or napping on the couch.
My dad is a former military man. As a man of few words with a daughter of many words, it can sometimes be difficult to see we're on the same playing field. But one memory of my father always stands out to me from when I was a kid. I must have been young because I only remember little blips from a day in October that we spent the whole day together. I remember going to buy hay and making a scarecrow in our front yard, playing games and mini golf at Fantasy Land and riding go-karts at Seekonk Grand Prix. I remember that after all that, I still wanted to go to the movies (clearly I had no understanding that these things cost money). Needless to say, it was getting late and we didn't make it to the movies, but the point is that I never wanted that day to end.
Now the days fly by in an instant, ending before I feel like I've even gotten started. That day we spent together may have only been a few hours long, but it has stayed with me my whole life. I hope we can have more days like that, Dad. I love you, and Happy Father's Day.
Mary Alexandre, Calendar Editor -- My dad Robert Beaudoin has been gone 16 years now. One of the best things about him was that he absolutely adored and respected my mother, and he of course, was the great love of her life - They were a classic World War II romance.
My parents had eight children, and because I was the youngest I can't possibly remember this, but my mother says my father adored babies, from #1 through #8. Mind you, this was in an era when many men were "hands off" about babies, diapers and raising children. My dad spent many a Saturday morning driving me to my riding lessons in Rehoboth, MA, from our house in Barrington, where I talked endlessly about horses, horses and more horses. Eventually, I probably became more interested in the boys that hung around the horses...and the riding lessons stopped.
But some things I inherited from my father continue today: I love flowers and the smell of mulch and dirt, probably from our trips to the old Primrose Hill Nursery in Barrington - just wish my snapdragons would bloom as nicely as his did! Oddly, as I've gotten older I must be channeling those childhood trips to Benny's or Grossman's Lumber in Riverside because I enjoy a stroll around a hardware store. Just wish I knew how to use all that stuff!
My father died too young, at 73, but "Pepere" did live to see many of his grandchildren born. I am also fortunate to have a father-in-law living in town, who has been a wonderful grandfather to my four girls. Happy Father's day to all, including my husband, who endures endless jokes because he is a man stuck in a house full of women - a wife, four daughters, and even two female dogs.
Leigh Medeiros, Reporter -- My father grew up in Bristol. He, his parents and six siblings lived in a tiny two bedroom house on State Street. I think the close quarters gave them all a real sense of family, generosity, and darn good senses of humor. My father can make an adventure out of the smallest thing like buying a dill pickle from an old-fashioned pickle barrel or making an instrument from an empty paper towel roll. He's an entertainer, a great dancer (from swing to zydeco), a skilled tradesman, a novice inventor, a movie goer, a cook and many other things. He's experienced all the ups and downs of life, but always manages to find something to get excited about. Happy Father's Day, Dad! I love you!
Ava Mascena, Contributor to the column, "Surviving High School" -- Thank you dad for always being there for me and waking me up for school every morning. I would be two hours late everyday if it wasn't for you ;D I love you Dad, Happy fathers day.
Cody Burnett, Reporter -- Thank you dad for all of the years that you have given me with the comfort of knowing that no matter how rough things may get I will always have an ally. You are the most trustworthy person that I know and with all of the countless people who put the reliance on you, I have never seen you falter. I have always and will always look up to you above anyone else. Watching how you live life has given me something to shoot for and if I am ever half of the person that you are then I have made it. I love you dad.
Alex Martel, Reporter -- Dad, Thanks for everything over the years. I appreciate more than you know; I recognize that I've been a piece of work at times and you've done a pretty good job of, well, doing whatever it is fathers do exactly. Being a guy who parents probably encapsulates it. Yeah, that's what we'll go with. Happy Father's Day.
Rebecca Nolan, Columnist -- I wrote this poem in 1995. I was fresh out of high school and battling those coming of age issues and a whole lot more. These are my father’s words as I heard them and so through my tough times they inspired me to write them in this poem. These words, this poem, is embedded in my brain, gives me a solid foundation to stand on my own two feet and keep me moving forward, and so I would love to thank my Dad, Rick Folkes.
‘Til the End
Keep your head up girl
Don’t let them take you down
Even though you fall,
The world will still go ‘round
Hold your chin up now
And always through your pain
Because it’s bound to come,
You don’t have to let it stain
Keep that motion forward
Never take a look back
You could lose your balance
And end up way off track
Hold those stormy eyes wide
Take in all you see
Then continue on,
Know what you want to be
Walk with a smile darling
Don’t show them any fear
Though you may fall again,
Your angel’s always near
Happy Father's Day from Bristol-Warren Patch
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