I was an anxious child. Heck, I'm an anxious adult, but I was a really anxious child. I worried about everything and everyone. It was just my nature. My dad traveled a lot when I was a kid. He was gone 2 - 3 nights a week. I remember when he was gone I would hear every thump and bump in the night. But when he was there I never heard a thing. I knew he'd take care of anything that went wrong.
Dad was always home on the weekends. He'd work outside on Saturdays. I'll never forget the way he'd come in smelling like the lawn mower. Or come through the door in all camo from hunting. On Sundays we would go to church, come home and eat something delicious mom had cooked, and then we'd sit down and watch NASCAR. I'm talking 1980's and 1990's NASCAR. From what I can remember, dad started out pulling for Lake Speed (because he was a "good Mississippi boy that loved the Lord.") Then "the new kid", Jeff Gordon, came along and dad hasn't looked back since. And I decided Bill Elliott was gonna be my guy.
When dad was home on Sundays, and we sat down and watched those races, everything was right in the world. I didn't have a worry in sight. It was Sunday and I was watching NASCAR with my dad.
As I grew up I followed the #9 car into its new era with Kasey Kahne. My love for the sport grew and I knew that if I was going to be true to my heart I had to end up working for NASCAR. I didn't even attend my first race until 2006, but I just knew I had to be a part of it. I remember going to a race in 2012 and telling my friend, "I have to do this! This is what I HAVE to do! I don't love anything like I love this."
And I did. And I'm here. And yesterday, in Talladega, AL, my dad came with me to his first race since I've been working for NASCAR. (Note: He had only been to one race prior to this)
We got to do everything anyone could dream they could do. VIP experience. We literally did it all. No matter how many times I do all of those things I never get tired of them, and being able to do them with my dad made it even better. He emailed me this morning and said, "It was truly one of the best days I have ever had."
For all of the things my father has done for me, there are no words to explain how much it means to me to be able to do something for him. And something I realized yesterday is that it isn't even about all the actual things we were able to do, but my dad got to see me in my element. Doing something well. Loving something. Something he had taught me to love.
He told my mom that they had raised a "classy young woman" and that people seem to "really respect me." There are no two better things anyone could ever say about me. And when it comes from your father it is just extra special.
I thought a lot about what Dale Jr. said in Victory Lane after his win yesterday about missing his dad and wondering what he would be thinking. He said, "Wondering isn't as good as the real deal."
Yesterday for me was one of those Victory Lane moments, but my dad was there and he was proud of me. I didn't even have to wonder if he was. I knew he was and is. And being able to experience that before it's too late or something changes was the real deal.
And everything was right in the world ... because it was Sunday I was watching NASCAR with my dad.
Dad was always home on the weekends. He'd work outside on Saturdays. I'll never forget the way he'd come in smelling like the lawn mower. Or come through the door in all camo from hunting. On Sundays we would go to church, come home and eat something delicious mom had cooked, and then we'd sit down and watch NASCAR. I'm talking 1980's and 1990's NASCAR. From what I can remember, dad started out pulling for Lake Speed (because he was a "good Mississippi boy that loved the Lord.") Then "the new kid", Jeff Gordon, came along and dad hasn't looked back since. And I decided Bill Elliott was gonna be my guy.
When dad was home on Sundays, and we sat down and watched those races, everything was right in the world. I didn't have a worry in sight. It was Sunday and I was watching NASCAR with my dad.
As I grew up I followed the #9 car into its new era with Kasey Kahne. My love for the sport grew and I knew that if I was going to be true to my heart I had to end up working for NASCAR. I didn't even attend my first race until 2006, but I just knew I had to be a part of it. I remember going to a race in 2012 and telling my friend, "I have to do this! This is what I HAVE to do! I don't love anything like I love this."
And I did. And I'm here. And yesterday, in Talladega, AL, my dad came with me to his first race since I've been working for NASCAR. (Note: He had only been to one race prior to this)
We got to do everything anyone could dream they could do. VIP experience. We literally did it all. No matter how many times I do all of those things I never get tired of them, and being able to do them with my dad made it even better. He emailed me this morning and said, "It was truly one of the best days I have ever had."
For all of the things my father has done for me, there are no words to explain how much it means to me to be able to do something for him. And something I realized yesterday is that it isn't even about all the actual things we were able to do, but my dad got to see me in my element. Doing something well. Loving something. Something he had taught me to love.
He told my mom that they had raised a "classy young woman" and that people seem to "really respect me." There are no two better things anyone could ever say about me. And when it comes from your father it is just extra special.
I thought a lot about what Dale Jr. said in Victory Lane after his win yesterday about missing his dad and wondering what he would be thinking. He said, "Wondering isn't as good as the real deal."
Yesterday for me was one of those Victory Lane moments, but my dad was there and he was proud of me. I didn't even have to wonder if he was. I knew he was and is. And being able to experience that before it's too late or something changes was the real deal.
And everything was right in the world ... because it was Sunday I was watching NASCAR with my dad.
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