My take on Dads” Weekend – without my dad
You won”t be seeing my dad in Moscow for Dads” Weekend.
Seeing as he is one of my absolute favorite people and best friends, you”d probably assume the opposite about our relationship from his absence.
I could grant him any number of excuses. He”s a self-employed logger and typically works weekends. My little sisters play sports and they might have a tournament on the Friday or Saturday the weekend falls on. Or maybe it”s the last weekend for bow hunting – I”m not going to deprive him of the rare pleasure of a leisurely weekend in the woods.
Lyndsie Kiebert
However, my dad could easily take the weekend off of work, my sisters have no sports tournaments coming up and he is not a bow hunter.
Put simply, my dad is just not a Dads” Weekend kind of guy. And honestly, I”m OK with that.
I don”t mean to categorize dads who attend Dads” Weekend as a certain type of dad. Fathers certainly come in all different types, from the crazy party dads to the avid fishermen to the cappuccino-sipping, New York Times-reading dads.
I”m sure all of these types will make appearances at some point during the weekend. But if I could categorize my dad, he would fit firmly into the non-Dads” Weekend type of dad. I can justify this a couple ways.
For one, there are the crowds, which are not my dad”s thing. He is as low-key as low-key can get, and he prefers small gatherings to larger ones in all cases. Imagining him at a Vandal football game is almost hysterical. I know he”d be willing to tough it out in order to spend time with me, but he”d much rather go for a walk or sit someplace quiet and talk than be surrounded by screaming college students coated in shades of gold and black body paint.
Secondly, many of the events offered during Dads” Weekend aren”t necessarily geared toward dads like mine. He doesn”t golf and his bad knees and down-to-earth nature don”t exactly say “Amazing Race participant.”
I could see him enjoying the Vandal volleyball game, but again – crowds. Beer tasting sounds like something he”d like, but he”s a frugal guy and $25 for meat and beer samples wouldn”t sit well with him when we could both eat at a modest restaurant for the same price.
I don”t mean to make my dad sound like a party pooper. My dad can be the life of the party when he feels so inclined. But this is often around family and long-time friends – not strangers in unfamiliar settings.
I”m not dreading Dads” Weekend without my dad. I”m still excited for the football and volleyball games, and may even tailgate or attend the downtown block party. Meeting my friends” dads will be a fun experience, and I won”t feel left out at all. This is because I know my dad well enough to know how he likes to spend our time together, and I know I”m not the only student on campus with a dad too low-key, too reserved or simply too busy to attend Dads” Weekend this year.
While I really admire the university”s inclusion of fathers during this special fall weekend, I won”t be participating in the dad-specific events. I”ll be curled up in bed after attending the Vandal football game with some friends, probably talking to my dad on the phone about driving home on an upcoming Friday so we can spend the weekend hiking or visiting family friends.
But come May, I”ll be taking my mom to every single Moms” Weekend event. She, unlike my father, is totally cut out for a rowdy weekend in Moscow.
Lyndsie Kiebert can be reached at [email protected]