My father, David Clever, was so loved by so many people because of many attributes that made him unique and special. I was so beyond lucky to have the privilege of calling him my father. Unfortunately, he passed away in May 2014 due to a long battle with cancer. Although there are countless reasons why he is so missed and will always be remembered, in honor of Father's Day on Sunday the 18th, here are 18 reasons why my father was a one of a kind human being, the kind you always want to be around. I miss you everyday Daddy, I loves ya.
1. The way he made others feel.
My dad loved to make people smile, and he was great at it too. Whether it was a joke or a hug, I can guarantee that he made others feel happy and welcome.
2. His sports knowledge.
Man did that guy know his stuff when it comes to sports. His knowledge ranged from football, basketball, baseball, golf, hockey, etc, and he could sit there and spit out facts to you from up to 50 years ago if not more about pretty much whatever you wanted to know. Needless to say whenever we played scene it, he usually always got the sports questions right. Every time he filled me with more information, I was more and more blown away and impressed.
3. His love for wide varieties of music.
It is a running joke in our family that my dad is probably the only white, bald, middle-aged man who wasn't into smoking pot and absolutely loved reggae music, especially Bob Marley. He also loved Elvis, Sam Cooke, Amy Winehouse, and that's only a few. He had a great taste in music.
4. The way he listened to music in the car.
Coming off of number 3, he would listen to these artists while driving with all of the windows down and the music full blast. It didn't matter if it was only about 50 degrees or if we were going somewhere nice where I wouldn't want my hair to be all wind blown, the windows were down and the music was cranking, it's just how he was.
5. His love for nature.
My dad loved to be outside when he could. In the summer time, we would always try to take a trip up north, and he would be found on the beach all day soaking up the sun drinking a beer. He also loved to go on trips with my grandpa and my brother to different islands to go explore, like Isle Royale, Drummond Island, and Beaver Island.
6. His nicknames.
If you got to know my Dad pretty well, there is a great chance that you had been given a nickname by him specifically, and they were classic and unforgettable. Here's a list for you: Kam-A, Kammie Lou, Bub, Schtick, Chuckleheads, Sweetie, Sutt Hyphen, Chunkie Flippin Phia, Bennie Butt, Lou Dou, June and Ward, Bruce Jenner, Lindsey flippin lou, Chunky Cheeks, Roadhouse...you get the idea. The list can go on for pages and pages. These nicknames were funny and always made people feel special, because you know that's how he showed his love.
7. His huge appreciation for horse racing.
He sure loved his horse racing. I can recall countless nights when I stayed up until the wee hours of the night with him watching horse racing on tv making bets. Also, every time we drove by a racetrack, he would announce the name of it in a loud and excited tone and would say, "If you're good we can stop there on the way back." We were all so thrilled with the thought (that's a little sarcastic, okay maybe a lot).
8. His laugh.
His laugh was seriously the most contagious laugh I have ever heard, especially when he really got laughing. He would tilt his head back, laugh like it was the funniest thing in the world, and have tears running down his face out of joy. I have a huge smile on my face just thinking about it.
9. His frustration with drive-thrus.
This one is pretty humorous to me. For some reason, my Dad always got flustered when he needed to order at a drive-thru. He would roll down the window, say "okay what do you want?!?" in a panicked voice, and throw his hands up like he didn't know what to do next. He could talk to you about financial issues all day and not be bothered by it, but you couldn't ask him to order you a cheeseburger in a drive-thru without some form of frustration. We would even try to make lists for him ahead of time, but they didn't seem to work. It's just one of those things that made him the person he was, and you couldn't help but laugh.
10. His way of greeting on the phone.
Every time that he would call me or that I would call him, he would greet me by yelling "Kam-A!!!!!" (my given nickname) for what seems like a minute, but was probably only about ten seconds. Every single time, this would make me laugh a little and roll my eyes, but little did I know that those awesome greetings would soon come to an end.
11. Him asking, "What was the funniest thing that happened to you?"
Every time someone he talked with on a regular basis returned from being on a trip somewhere, he would always ask, "What was the funniest thing that happened to you?", and expected to hear a damn good story. It was his way of showing interest in your trip and getting a good laugh out of it.
12. Being able to sit and watch a game together.
These are probably some of my favorite memories that I have with my dad because I know that we were both watching something that we were passionate about, and a lot of times we just small talked about the games. There wasn't need for continuous conversation, we could just sit back, relax, and enjoy the game together. A lot of times I would come over for big games to keep him company. I wish that I had that opportunity now.
13. His announcing skills during games.
My dad often said little announcements in funny voices during games that made you smile.
14. Him being a kid at heart.
I had the privilege of going to many amusement parks with my dad, and when we went, he went on every ride that he could. In fact, when we went to Cedar Point when I was about six years old, my dad took me on the Blue Streak, and I was scared out of mind. His response was, "It's good for ya!". Going up the first hill I was bawling, and he put his arm around me and smiled, then started laughing when we went down the hill. Another good memory was when we went to Disney World and him and my sister and I went through the single rider line to ride Expedition Everest about nine times. I'm so happy to have those memories with him.
15. His bad and repetitive jokes.
When my dad liked a joke, chances are you would hear it a few times. Some of his favorites are: "Does your face hurt? It's killing me." or "I'm on a seafood diet, I see food and I eat it!" or "There was just one problem with this dessert, it was too small!" or rubbing his stomach and exclaiming "I'm a big, fat, tub of goo!". I have heard each of these jokes hundreds of times, but I always laughed because I know my dad got enjoyment out of it.
16. Him wearing strange clothing because he can.
My dad loved wearing his parrot shirt with shorts and Jesus like sandals. He even wore his shorts and sandals to football games when it was 35 degrees with a chance of snow. The good thing was that you could never lose the guy in the crowd who had a bright yellow button up with red parrots all over it.
17. His continuous strength and courage.
Despite fighting cancer for seven years, he almost always had a smile on his face. My dad is my role model and my inspiration every day, and this one reason is the main reason why. He was such a strong fighter against an evil sickness.
18. His love for his kids.
My dad always made all of us feel loved by either telling us how proud he is and how much he loves us, or calling to check in, or including us in the many adventures that we had. During the last two weeks with him, he kept reminding me and the rest of my siblings how much he loved us and how he was so proud of who we were.
Because of these reasons and many more, I am always going to miss my good ol' dad, and the ache in my heart from losing him will never be completely healed. It's not that the ache goes away, you just learn how to live with it. My dad was truly one of a kind and the memories I got to experience with him will always stay with me and inspire me to be more like him.
Love always,
The Girl with a One of a Kind Dad
