Victoria’s Read

By: Victoria Evangeline Reed

My Dad. What a fellow he is. He sure could drive me bonkers. With his “It’s only because I love you.” and “I’ve been around a bit longer.” And “You really should save that money instead of spending it.” If he wasn’t telling me what to do, he was asking questions like “Who’s that boy?” and “Where are you going?”

Needless to say, I pretty much resented my father in the early years. Because of him, I never got to get into financial trouble or marry a loser. My younger years were pretty much spent learning dreary things like appreciating the value of a dollar and respecting myself.

He never let me have any fun with my friends. Every time he caught me skipping school, he would ground me for the weekend. The weekend! Why then? That’s when all the cool kids had their parties. You know the kind, lots of booze and no parents. It didn’t really matter anyway since he had a gift (He called it.) of foreseeing the future. “I know what happens at those parties and no daughter of mine is going to get involved in that!”

Of all the guys I dated, there was only one boy my dad liked. The rest were never good enough. Who cares if he hasn’t bathed in a few days? Who cares if he doesn’t have a job? Who cares if he doesn’t speak English? I’ll tell you who cares, my father, that’s who. He’d flick on that porch light so fast; you’d think you were on a Broadway stage getting ready to do your best impression of sweet little Elizabeth Walton and I was pretty good at it. That is until mom came out. She always knew what I was up to. Most times dad wouldn’t listen to her though because after all, I was daddy’s little girl.

Just when I thought I would spend the rest of my mundane life under my dad’s watchful eye, a boy came along who met my dad’s strict requirements. He was a nice looking, clean cut boy who worked and treated his little angel as such.

It was then, the porch light shone inside my head. I understood my father. I got just what he was trying to tell me all these years and when he walked me down the isle to give me away, we both knew that his job was a job well done.

Because of my father, I am a good wife and mother………. and always a good daughter. Right Dad!