By Bill Sniffin, publisher
Although it is a long time ago now, I can remember vividly how worried I was about any of our three daughters when boys came along to take them out on dates.
Our daughters Alicia Haulman, 54, Shelli Johnson 52, and Amber Hollins 50, will probably snicker when they read this. They always dated nice boys but as their father I was pretty darned protective of them when they were in their teens some 35 years ago, or so.
One of those guys dating our daughters was a young up-and-coming fellow named Ron Hansen. So, it was with some amusement as I read what he wrote on Facebook recently. He posted these comments under a photo of his daughter and two other beauties, all dressed up for the prom.
Ever the protective dad, he exclaimed: “Lord give me strength to get through this!”
Here are some other comments he offered:
“Want to know why dads can’t sleep, have short tempers, drink, and have lots of firearms, knives and other torture devices? This is why. Lord, give me strength to get through this and not go to jail.
“To the boys/young men in these young women’s lives: you have been warned to keep your hands to yourself, treat them like gold and treat their mothers with respect. Should you not do so then please know that this dad/almost uncle Ron is coming looking for you. I will find you and it will be quiet, quick, but quite painful – to which I will enjoy way too much.
“Oh, and remember, we parents have eyes everywhere. There is nothing you can do without us finding out about. NOTHING.
“Now, where did I put that beer? Oh, there it is – right next to the body stretching rack. Have a wonderful time, boys. This talk went well. I will be right over here cleaning my shotgun.”
Well said, Ron. I believe he really did date one of our daughters. And I kept a sharp eye on him. Turn-about is fair play, Ron, or as they say: what goes around, comes around.
When our daughters started dating, I decided to take a pro-active approach when it came to protecting their virtue and their lives. I always walked my daughters out to the car with the guy and made them buckle their seatbelts in front of me. I said if you are not buckling up, you are NOT leaving this driveway.
Then I wished them luck but reminded them that I would be waiting up and might just walk out to the car and greet them when they got home.
This seemed to work although Lish, Shel, and Am might have something to add to my spiel.
As for Ron and all those other young dads, good luck. You and those other parents are headed for some sleep-deprived nights. It all turned out great for us, though, and I hope it does for you, too .
And of course, the REAL reason these dads are so protective of their daughters is that they can vividly remember what their own hormones were kicking up about back in the day.
So, to all you young teen boys out there – remember these old guys who are the dads of the girls you are dating – well, they were young once, too. They have a pretty good idea of what some of you are thinking.
Perhaps the biggest disaster concerning proms in Wyoming this year are the big spring snowstorms. Our central part of the state has been clobbered and towns along Interstate 80 have been getting buried, too.
Now that can take the curl out of a girl’s pretty hair and cause their new dresses to be soiled and wet. Even the guys nice suits mess up. Plus, there is always the chance of getting the family car stuck becomes real, too.
Wyoming weatherman Don Day confirmed this in his April 14 forecast, saying there were really no good days ahead.
“Spring is on spring break, folks,” he said. “This is a long stretch of cold and occasionally damp weather. We’re going to have off and on snow, rain, fog through this region.”
I recall taking my wife Nancy to her senior prom in western Iowa way back in May of 1965. It was a really special time. Hard to believe it was 56 years ago.
We did not have to worry about spring snow storms there in little Harlan, Iowa, but thunderstorms in tornado alley could wreak havoc, too.
