Happy Father’s Day! In honor of the day, and love letter month, I’m writing a letter to my dad, reflecting on one of our favorite days of the year and celebrating roller coasters. Enjoy!
Dear Dad,
Happy Father’s Day to you! I’m smiling as I write this, remembering all the Father’s Days we spent at Cedar Point. Ever the logical engineer, you somehow figured out that Father’s Day was their least busy day of the year and, therefore, the most logical day to go. Shortest lines, easier parking, and, most importantly, more time available to ride all of the roller coasters. Most dads wouldn’t dream of spending their day at an amusement park – they thought of hot, humid days, whiny kids, tired feet, sticky cotton candy hands. None of that sounds fun. But you saw it differently. You used your day to give to us rather than take as your own.
To me, roller coasters were the entire point of an amusement park. The rest was sideshow fluff, intermission popcorn. If I remember this accurately, you took me on my very first one in Kansas City at World’s Of Fun when I was not quite tall enough, but you somehow talked the operator into letting me ride with you. It was our special ride together; no one else was interested. It was incredible, like seeing the world illuminated with a whole new range of color previously invisible to me! Pure delight! And, it was ours alone. That ride launched us into years of shared roller coaster rides. Eventually others joined us, but the rides were still always ours to me, shared grins as we chugged up those first hills, preparing to fly once at the top.
You saw something in me back then. You saw that I like thrills and dynamism in my life. Rather than letting that run wild, unguided, you took me by the hand and led me into it, staid. As with everything in your life, you handled me with calm.
You must have been a Navy SEAL in a previous life because you are the embodiment of that sentiment. When I’ve gone on life roller coasters, I have often thought about how you would handle the given situation, the calm you would bring, the logical thought, keeping the coaster on the rails.
If then it’s not that the things you pursue or avoid are coming at you, but rather that you in a sense are seeking them out, at least try to keep your judgment of them steady, and they too will remain calm and you won’t be seen chasing after or fleeing from them.
– MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 11.11
I have gone on a lot of life roller coasters in the years since our Father’s Day roller coaster rides. For so many years, I didn’t get it right. My coasters went flying, crashing, loopy-de-looping in the wrong way, knowing grins devolving into panicked cries. Only when I’ve gone back to channel your energy and guidance have I figured out how to get it right.
With my most recent life roller coaster – all of my hip and pelvis surgeries, an epic roller coaster indeed – I have nailed it. It is an entire amusement park swirling around me, yet I’m in the center, solid as a rock, more connected to you than ever. I’m grateful to you for teaching me this and for always, always, showing me the way back to my rails.
Since I am sure we won’t ride any more roller coasters together, here is a virtual ride on The Gemini, one of our all time favorites. Hop on and grin!
I hope you have the best Father’s Day ever! I love you!
Carey
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Wow!! Best Father’s Day Present Ever!! Thanks! The Gemini is looking a bit old and bleached-out, but still feels strong. I felt every hump & bump along the way, especially the fast horizontal whirl at the bottom!
I wasn’t aware that I was teaching you “Calm”…I was just having fun along with the rest of the gang. Father’s Day was my guess as the best day of the year to go there since no Dad would want to spend his special day chasing around an amusement park…I thoroughly enjoyed the day because it was the best possible day to ride the most rides since the lines were shorter than any other day.
That day at “Worlds of Fun” was special since a group of the McDonnell Clan Reunion Partiers took off from the picnic to go ride the roller coaster and left us behind, so we decided to go do the coaster too. We happened to find a shorter line than they were in so we got to ride before they did and finished and went back to the picnic before their party returned…they never knew we rode and were exclaiming at how fun it was and that others should try it too…but we already knew. And I don’t think they ever knew we rode too! Dad
I’m so happy you enjoyed this! I loved remembering and writing it.
That last twist at the end of the Gemini was always the best part.
Maybe you weren’t consciously aware of what you were teaching me, but you were teaching me nonetheless.
I didn’t know that part about the day at World’s Of Fun! That makes it all the more special, even more “secretly ours”.
These are special memories for life. And, who knows, maybe we will ride a roller coaster again!