Corporate IT Chick

My dad has always been a storyteller.

No matter the situation, he has a story. If you’re having a bad day, he can tell you about a time when he faced something similar. If you’re worried about a challenge, he has a story about someone who overcame one. If life throws an unexpected curveball, somehow, somewhere in his memory, there’s a story that helps make sense of it all.

Growing up, I didn’t realize how special that gift was. Sometimes I would laugh to myself  and think, “Here comes another story.” But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate what those stories really were. They weren’t just stories. They were lessons, reassurance, history, and wisdom wrapped together.

My dad has a unique way of connecting people to experiences. He can take something you’re going through today and find a thread that leads back to yesterday. His stories remind us that we’re not alone, that others have faced difficult times before, and that there is usually something to learn from every situation.

Then came COVID-19 in 2020. 

For the first time in my life, I remember feeling truly unsettled. The world seemed uncertain. Schools closed. Businesses shut down. People were isolated from family and friends. We watched the news every day, trying to understand what was happening and what would happen next.

And during that time, I found myself worried about something I had never worried about before.

I wondered if my dad had a story.

To my surprise he did not have a story. 

I felt very afraid. 

For as long as I could remember, he had always been able to compare life to something he had experienced or heard about before. But COVID felt different. It felt like uncharted territory. I remember thinking, “If my dad does not have a story for this we could all possibly be in trouble.”

Of course, my dad being my dad, he still found ways to offer perspective. He reminded us of resilience. He talked about people adapting during difficult times. He encouraged us to stay hopeful even when answers were hard to find.

What I realized was that the story was never really about the event itself.

The story was about the lesson.

The lesson was that people are stronger than they think. Families can get through hard seasons together. Challenges don’t last forever. And faith, perseverance, and love can carry us through circumstances we’ve never seen before.

Today, on Father’s Day, I celebrate the storyteller.

I celebrate the man whose stories have made me laugh, think, learn, and sometimes see life from a completely different perspective. I celebrate the father who taught me that every experience has value and every challenge has something to teach us.

Most of all, I celebrate the man who showed me that sometimes the greatest gift a father can give isn’t money, advice, or material things.

Sometimes it’s simply a story.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad. Thank you for all the stories—and for being one of the greatest parts of mine.