Listen Live
WERE AM Mobile App 2020

LISTEN LIVE. LIKE US ON FACEBOOK. FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

The Buzz Cincy Featured Video
CLOSE

54 reasons why i love my father fathers day

By now, many of you know that I met my father, Chris Truesdale (pictured with me above), on Facebook in 2009 after he responded to an inbox message asking, “Looking for father.” He responded with a “yes” and the rest is history! I had gone 29 years without knowing who my father was so, when he immediately welcomed me into his life, I felt overwhelmed by his dotting care and fatherly affection–something I was not used to.

As men, I don’t think we express enough gratitude for the male role models in our lives as we do for the women who have held it down for us–often alone. But when men do step up and do their part, I feel it’s imperative that we recognize them for it. If you want to learn about how I met my father on Facebook and how our our relationship developed, you can watch this clip I shot back in 2012:

And you can read this longer piece. So, here are 54 reasons why I am happy my dad is alive today!

1. When I took to Facebook looking for my father, Chris Truesdale didn’t hesitate to respond.

yes

2. After bonding over Skype for a year and a half, he invited me to stay with him at his flat in The Bronx, N.Y., until I could find a job. I do not have photos of that cramped space on Clay Ave., but it was this small:

Empty-Shoe-Box

3. After the first day, I learned that he loves beer. He prefers Budweiser.

budweiserbottle_th002.jpga0ee809d-ecdc-4070-84b2-c1dad6b16cc3Larger

4. He loves people from Detroit, my hometown. Here, he is with April, a friend of ours he knew years before we met.

1466170_10152458046004832_140920464_n

5. I’m proud of my Detroit roots, but, as soon as I stepped off the plane at JFK Airport, my father told me that I’m a New Yorker now. Yep, he helped me become a New Yorker and I am lovin’ it!

292849_274172579266715_3369496_n

6. He jokes about me being a Russian spy. Why, you may ask?

7. Because he told me Dave Chappelle told him so.

dave

8. My father served our country in the U.S. Army, but now he makes his living as a street vendor in the Manhattan neighborhood of Soho, where he sells cool things to tourists.

5448_1088004526268_7818686_n

9. And he also meets some cool people from the neighborhood. Like him.

5448_1087993365989_3612835_n

10. And her.

230313_1011000881225_6737_n

11. And this dude right here.

5448_1087992965979_1975192_n

12. I love my dad’s gift for gab. He was able to use it to convince some guy to let him play around with his Maserati.

421379_3257995014674_1766692401_n

13. And when work gets too hectic, he has no problem sleeping on the job, so he can be fresh and happy for the next costumer.

254405_1779092043024_4364038_n

14. Back to my father’s gift for gab. At times, his mouth gets him in trouble and people do this to him. Sometimes, it’s the man at the corner bodega.

5448_1088004566269_365665_n

14. Other times, it’s his closest friends, like John,who flip him the bird. In his own house.

5448_1087993445991_47286_n

15. But generally speaking, people LOVE HIM!

11046_1151349469852_2643706_n

16. One of the best things my father ever did was introduce me to my loving New York family.

1470171_10152459593029832_2057056979_n

17. Like my Aunt Candy, who has educated me on why my dad is the way he is.

249643_223846477643545_3936160_n

18. My grandmother.

Screen shot 2014-04-19 at 1.11.45 PM

19. My uncle Leroy. People say we take after each other. Oh and we both call my dad a Supa Old [Expletive] when he starts talking too much smack.

283229_454528117917480_113463995_n

20. My cousin, Liana. My dad says we are the two bougie people in the family. I guess that’s what happens when you learn the difference between a Merlot and a Cabernet Sauvignon.

1185400_10201243085431959_780772848_n

21. And my other cousin, Preston, who helped me to put pour beer down my dad’s throat when his mouth got too big for his actions.

10155915_627902403951884_1962802265_n

22. And my dad gave me the best stepmom any man could have. My dad is cool for giving me Maliaka for several reasons:

10264803_229359890604717_7739995379281603512_n

23. For one, we’re the same age–33– so I can talk to her like a sister on one day and a mom on another. “Hey, that’s too close,” my dad jokes whenever I want to give my mom a hug.

934972_10151456587199211_1751252817_n

24. And she plays great pranks on my dad, like the time he feel asleep at the job–again. One day, she did something clever to him while he was asleep and I was able to take a photo of him after the fact.

430136_10151500524389211_945141256_n

25. He also has his own sense of humor.

168243_1516031186667_3266317_n

26. She makes my dad drop his manly facade and gets him to take silly selfies.

1897952_224353974438642_492988391_n

27. And this one.

1554568_220177488189624_334407372_n

28. And this cute one here.

1607128_228473440693362_6377933327185602507_n

29. Most importantly, my stepmom makes my dad happy and that makes him a great father too me. Great pick, dad!

1235444_156252237915483_381790427_n

30. Oh, and my dad and I take great selfies too.

166069_10150845650379211_484672567_n

31. He says if the ladies give me a double take, it’s all because of him. That face is a bit much, though.

10157249_10152043134109211_642739945_n

32. Even when he gets sick, he is cool enough to pose for a photo with his son.

1003292_10151495035779211_1847468299_n

33.  One thing about meeting my dad late in life is that we can catch up on conversations we missed when I was a teenager. Like his advice about women.

1013526_133642550176452_373568881_n

34. And about life in general. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, son. “You can’t clap with one hand.”

35. Because he has made me a New Yorker, we have a family, cross-borough sports rivalry. He lives in Soundview, in The Bronx. I live in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

Brooklyn vs. Bronx - Grey Heather

36. Like Spike Lee–even though the filmmaker is from Brooklyn–, my dad will die a New York Knicks fan.

37. I, however, will rep Brooklyn to the grave. Can somebody say, “PLAYOFFS.”

38. And, because of my dad, I eat like a New Yorker. I even eat my pizza like this.

20100714-foldhold-full-lede

39. And, like him, I am snobbish about my New York ways. Jon Stewart, help me out.

40. But times in New York weren’t ways good. I went a year and a half without a fulltime job. But he always kept me motivated.

41. And when another employer pass on me for a job, he’d make me feel good about myself.

42. Sometimes, when I didn’t have much money, he’d slip me a few dollar bills–even when I didn’t want it.

tumblr_m3b3hhI8pm1qa0izf

43. He also made sure I had money for a metro card to go to job interviews.

metrocard-new-york-cityjpg-0874a306a106969a_large

44. My dad also introduced me to male bonding. We kiss like the Wayans brothers.

MARLON WAYANS, SHAWN WAYANS

45. Society, unfortunately, is not used to males expression affection to each other. So, sometimes, you have to tell people where to go. My dad taught me how to do that and not feel bad about it.

marlon

46. But what is especially wonderful about my soon-to-be, four-year relationship with my father is that it is normal. Neither of us is perfect. We disagree about all kinds of things. For example, I think he can be mean sometimes.

47. But that’s fine. I can be sarcastic and he accepts that.

48. That’s what’s most important: We accept each other for who we are and improve each other when we can.

49. My father showed me how much he loved me when we appeared on the “Today” show on Father’s Day weekend in 2013.

971258_10151487101674211_1524906852_n

50. He said that, had he known where I was , he would have come to claim me. But after I told him my grandmother would have had none of that, he said would have worked something out with her. Inez Starr, my grandmother, did a fine job, he tells me. Dad gets a gold star for honoring my late grandmother (pictured below, when I was 8 or 9 years old.).

7739_10151469915899211_885662813_n

51. When he was asked if he had any doubts about me being his son, he said, no. “Because, I knew he was mine,” he said. That made me feel so:

52. Then, there was the the part where he said, “we don’t have to go to Maury.”

53. Indeed, he is my father. And, because of him, he makes me want to be a father someday too. Thanks for responding to that Facebook message!

 

54. And happy 54th birthday, dad. I LOVE YOU!

 

 

 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD! 54 Reasons Why I Love My Father  was originally published on newsone.com