For the past several years, Fathers Day has fallen on the first day of staff training at the Christian camp I direct in northern Maine.  I don't mind this, because I love camp and the start of a new camp season is always a wonderful time. But this year, camp won't start for another week, so my wife, youngest daughter and I were still at home. (We have since traveled up to Mapleton, Maine as camp will be starting in five days)

So for Fathers Day, 2017, we started by visiting the church that houses both the school where I teach and where rose just finished her Sophomore year.  There's a whole story as to why we're visiting other churches, but that's for another blog.  After church, we drove into Portland to have lunch at my favorite restaurant.  It is called Babylon Restaurant, and it specializes in Iraqi food.  The owners are immigrants, and they put out an amazing, authentic buffet on Sundays: falafels, kabobs, grilled chicken and vegetables...  Most of the dishes I don't remember by name, but it was all delicious. The spices are so unique that many of the dishes taste unlike anything I've eaten anywhere else.

Sue offered to drive home from Portland which worked out perfectly, as our 23 year old daughter, Naomi, called just as we were leaving the parking lot. We talked for quite some time.  She went through a really rough stretch this past fall and winter, but she is doing so well now.  We mostly talked about our new favorite shoe, "Riverdale".  She was a big fan of Archie comics when she was a kid, and this new Netflix show puts a really clever twist on the whole Riverdale gang.  Betty, Jughead, Archie and the gang find themselves in the middle of a very dark murder investigation.  Naomi and I have always been ones who enjoyed the same books and shows, and that hasn't changed.  Because her work schedule is virtually the polar opposite of mine, we don't talk as much as we'd like to, so the ride home was a real treat.

After arriving home, we went for a quick swim at Woods Pond, a public beach just a mile from our house.  Then I had a chance to skype with Jona-Lynn, our 25 year old who lives in Austin, Texas.  We spoke for quite some time, and then I read to her.  We are in the last book of the "Peter and the Star Catchers" series.  I have always read to our girls, and Jo, being  mildly dyslexic, still enjoys being read to.  We have a skype-reading date most Sundays.

After having visited with Jo, Rose, Sue and I sat down to watch the final two episodes of "Riverdale".  I was wrong in my prediction of who did it, but I was in the right family.  I won't say any more except that none of the main teenage characters was guilty.  Not even Reggie.

Being a dad just gets better and better.