Sunday, June 17, 2012

HONORABLE MEN


I love it when my blog date falls on Father's Day because it gives me an opportunity to honor my dad as well as yours.

Happy Father's Day to all the important men in your life!

Today, I'd like to talk about two men in my life. One's real. The other's fictional, but so real to me I feel as though he's stepped off the page and stolen my heart.

First, my dad.

Along with the wonderful traits of being a good husband and father and family provider, he had a few quirks. One of them was being the eternal fixer-upper.

From a couple of pieces of plywood and a few two-by-fours, he could make a set of bookshelves that doubled as a room divider. From a snarl of old twine, he could crochet a sack to keep his extra cash safe when he went off on a road trip on his motorcycle. He could transform a pile of chicken bones and a handful of herbs into the best soup you've ever tasted.

But my dad could never take a set of directions or a recipe and follow along step-by-step. Oh, no—he had to do things his way.

So does the hero of my August Harlequin American, HONORABLE RANCHER.

Ben Sawyer's way is to offer a hand in friendship, to be there when folks need him, to live up to everyone's expectations. To be the boy next door to the woman he's always loved from afar. The widow of his best friend.

Until...

Until he realizes he can't live his life following along step-by-step.

Until, like my dad, he decides to throw away the directions and do things his way.

This decision changes his life and that of the woman he loves...and just about everyone else's in the small town of Flagman's Folly!

Hmm...

I think it has suddenly hit me why I love and respect and look up to Ben Sawyer.

And why I dedicated HONORABLE RANCHER to my dad.

~~~

On this special day, I hope you'll take a moment to honor the special men in your life—and to leave a comment or share a story about one of them here.

 
All my best to you,


Barbara


~~~~~~


Barbara White Daille
http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille
https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille




6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Happy Father's Day to the two special men in my life. My Dad who passed away in 1998 and my Husband who became a Dad in 1998.

Barbara White Daille said...

Tammy - both a sad and happy year for you, but a beautiful tribute to both men.

Hope they--and you--have a wonderful day.

Thanks for stopping by!

linda s said...

Your dad sounds super. His soup recipe and DH's sound about the same. Friday night was always Dad's soup night. I look forward to reading your book, as always.

Barbara White Daille said...

Hi, Linda - yeah, my dad was something special--but aren't they all. ;)

Sounds like you've got a couple of great men in your life, too.

Thanks for your wonderful comment. You've made my day. I hope you enjoy HONORABLE RANCHER!

Amanda Renee said...

What a touching post! I'm looking forward to reading Honorable Rancher!

Barbara White Daille said...

Amanda - thanks so much!

I'm glad you enjoyed the post, and I hope you feel the same about the story.