It’s not uncommon for kids today to live with their struggling, single, mothers who are striving to make ends meet and pulling their hair out with stress. My single parent is not an out-of-control mother but a half-deaf, metal head that I call daddy.

Most people who know me say I’m random, unique, spontaneous and fun-loving, but they never think about the man that helped make me that way. All around the world are fathers, but no father can compare to mine. My daddy is the daddy that lets me keep dreaming and never holds me back and helps make me a better person. In this hurricane we call life my daddy has helped me prepare for whatever weather life may throw at me.

He teaches me that you can speak your mind if you speak it with wisdom. He tells me all the time to hold my tongue, because it’s sharp. He has shown me the world through his loving eyes.

Life with my dad is full of adventures and memories, many of which have been with our epic powder-blue mini van named “The Quest”. (It’s also lovingly referred to as our “Millennium Falcon”.)

I can remember the many times we drove across Texas to see the Alamo, NASA, Six Flags, or Fiesta Texas. I can’t even name all the countless concerts he has taken me to; from Ozzy to ZZ Top, and Journey to Mayhem Fest.

Our lives revolve around music. Music, honestly, is so important to the both of us . We live for the bands that give us so much happiness and help bring us together. We share the same passion for the music and each other.

A long time ago I was falling down a dark and empty hole, but there he was, picking me up and calling my name, trying to find his precious daughter. I was still lost and helpless as a newborn baby, but he stayed in my head trying to save me and he kept getting louder and louder, until he saved me from the dark room that had swallowed me whole.

Now, I’m so far from that dark past because of him. I could never thank my dad enough for never becoming one of the people who gave up on me.

There is a quote from Grease where Frenchie says “The only man a girl can depend on is her daddy” and I honestly live by it.

I can’t begin to explain how much he means to me or how much I love him. He will let me run, but he is always there to help me when I fall. He is my ultimate hero.