My Dad. The King of Dads!

This is my dad, Don Allen Urquhart, and me on a fishing trip off the western coast of Mexico a couple years ago. To me it’s the best photo of us together ever taken. We had just spent a couple days fishing for tuna on a charter trip. It was a business related trip that my dad called me up at the last minute for and invited me to come along. It was one of our first times he and I traveled just us on a trip. Despite both of us fighting off sea sickness for most of the trip we had a riot. Our boat caught nearly 160 tuna in just the first few hours of the first day. We had to slow down a bit because we were quickly running into our quota the permit allowed on the boat for the trip. (there is nothing like eating freshly seared tuna while you have a rod in your hand catching more.)

It was so much fun watching my dad reel in fish after fish. I didn’t fish near as much as he did. I was having more fun watching him. This 40 pound tuna I am holding was actually caught by him. But he wanted me to be the one to hold it for the photo.

But that’s how my dad is. He has always loved me with all his heart and has always wanted me to succeed.

I shot some video on the trip and for awhile when I was fishing he took the camera and shot me fishing. I don’t know if he knows it, I guess he will soon, but at one point while he is shooting the video of me he is also talking to business associate and the conversation is very clear. As I am pulling in a small tuna he is talking to another man about me and said, “I am a proud father.”

In my heart I will always thank him for that.

He has always meant the world to me. To me he has always been the strongest yet gentlest man to walk the earth. He has always been there to love me unconditionally with all his heart.

I put him through hell and back when I was young. I came very close to death once and cant imagine what fear and sorrow he must of felt. But he was there and he believed in me and never doubted I could be whole again.

Sometimes we have joked that I am his negative — meaning he is taller, blonde hair, fair complected and blue eyed– and I am short, brown, darker and brown.

But although we have different coloring, we have the same build, same walk, same mannerism and the same hands with stubby fingers.

I also have his name, I am proud to be named Don James Urquhart. I take pride and I am honored knowing my father wanted me to carry his name.

My dad sacrificed so much to watch me succeed and I only hope that I can be half the man and half the father he has been. His one major goal in life relating to me is for him to see me happy. For me, it is I always want to make him proud of the son I am and the man I am becoming.