Let me tell you, if it was not for my dad I would not be the woman I am today. Dads are such important pieces in our lives, they teach you how to be loved, how you should be treated, they take care of you and they give the best advice, and guide you through the difficult times. My dad has been a major part of my life and one of best friends since birth, he has supported me through all of the ups and downs and has never failed to make me smile. He gives the realest advice that anyone could ask for and is always looking out for me. I wanted to write this post to share how impactful dads can be, especially mine to me.

You see no matter what it is that I am struggling with he has always been there to tell me "I'm Fine" and well to others that might seem harsh, but its the truth, because at the end of the day most things are temporary, and you do get through them, no matter what, I am fine. Something I have learned from my dad is that life is not supposed to be easy, you are supposed to struggle but that is what builds character. A famous line from my dad is "what did you think it was going to be easy?", and well I guess I just did not expect life to get so real so fast after high school. But this made me realize that if life was so easy then no one would struggle and everyone would thrive, that is just not the case.

I am currently in my spring semester of my sophomore year of college, and let me tell you it has been brutal. I go to school about 887 miles from home, or 12 hours, at the University of Kentucky. In the spring, I do not have the time to go home because there are no real breaks. I was able to fly to Boston to visit my mom and sister, but my dad was away on business, it was not until I came back from Boston and realized how much I missed my dad. When I told him, the next thing I knew he was flying down to visit me for a weekend. Like how amazing is it that my dad knew I was having a rough semester and just decided to book a flight to come and see me! But this was exactly what I needed, and seeing him was and is enough to get me through this last month of sophomore year.

Bottom line is, never take parents, especially dads for granted. They definitely do not show the hands on love like moms do, but instead they show it through actions and advice. I have learned so much from my dad and without all those pieces of advice I would not be as strong and courageous as I am today.

So dad, thank you, for pushing me to be my best and to always take risks. Thank you to encouraging me to do the things that might seem scary, like going to Barcelona for the summer, or going to college 12 hours from home. Thank you for letting me know that I will figure it all out, and most importantly thank you for always telling me that I'm Fine, because you are right, I am fine. Even if it does not seem like it to me, I know that I am fine and will be fine.

Lastly, thank you for loving me unconditionally and pushing me to my full potential.

I Love You.