Father's Day

June is my favorite time of year in Tioga County for many different reasons. Here's a very short story I wrote about Wellsboro's Laurel Festival. This year the solstice is on the same day as Father's Day, and finishes up Laurel Festival. Happy Father's Day to all the dad's out there. Be proud, but maybe in a different way than this father...


FATHER'S DAY


I love June. Everything is awake. The hills are green and fresh. The wind feels alive. Everyone is enjoying the weather and anticipating the upcoming summer season.

Wellsboro pays homage to Pennsylvania's state flora with the Laurel Festival, which reminds me that it will soon be Father's Day, and I couldn't be more proud.

This year, my daughter Laura has been chosen as a dairy princess. She could have been a Laurel Queen. She's pretty enough, but dairy farming is a family tradition.

Farming is important here in Tioga County. If you ate today, you can thank a farmer. It's hard work. We pour our heart, blood, sweat, and soul into the soil. 

My family has been farming for generations. We have a deep bond with the land, a connection. We belong to the land. We reap what we sow.

Laura will ride on the float through Main Street. She'll be on display for the entire crowd. She was chosen for this. I say she was born for it.

She's nervous. Everyone will be looking, but I tell her not to worry. Everything will be fine. Ours is a profession to be proud of. Hold your head up Honey.

It's Father's Day in Tioga County, and it's also Solstice. It's the longest day of the year. It's the longest day of Laura's life, and her last.

We belong to the land. The land provides. I pour my heart, my blood, my seed into the soil. It will sustain life. It will sustain me.

I sacrifice my only daughter for the good of the Mother, the community. Only death can pay for life. It's Father's Day, and I couldn't be more proud.