Who is Daddy? He is a man who lives where I live, but he leaves early before the sun comes up, and he does not get home until the sun has gone down.

He plays games with me for a short while, and then I am off to

bed. As I get older, I say, “Can I go Daddy?” and his reply is “Yes, get in the car.” We ride around, take care of business, and then back home.

Daddy cuts the grass and fixes everything that breaks. I guess he is the smartest Daddy that ever lived. When I got my first bike, he would run for a mile keeping me from falling. We went fishing, and I would keep putting the pole in the water. Daddy would say, “I am going to throw you in if you don’t stop,” but he never did.

As I grew older, I always wondered why Daddy would yell at me and tell me what and how to do things. He always made me get my haircut, brush my teeth, dress well and wear shoes. I always had to say “Yes, sir” and “Yes, ma’am,” and the other kids didn’t.

Well, one day, Daddy left before the sun came up, and he did not return at dark. As I stood looking out the window for Daddy, the phone rang and someone said that Daddy had been in an accident at work. Daddy had died at work today.

As I sat and looked at him laying there with flowers all around him, I realized what Daddy had been telling me all those years. He had been trying to mold me into a fine young man and now it was too late to say “Thank you, Daddy, I understand.”

If your Daddy left for work today or on Father’s Day and you understand and care, call him now and tell him before it is too late. Happy Father’s Day!

Wayne Norwood is a lieutenant with the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Department and owner and operator of the Louisiana Trreasures Museum located at 10290 Highway 22, West Pontchatoula.