The Popcorn Popper

This is a popcorn popper.  On the outside, there's nothing really special about this appliance but it means a lot to me.  We had it out to pop popcorn for family movie night last week and the kids overfilled it and it started smoking.  I thought for sure that it had died.

I've had that popper for nearly 15 years.  It was my first day at college at Utah State.  I was moving into my first apartment and I was terrified.  Starting new things and being in a new place can be really exciting but mostly scary.  My family was helping me to move in and as they left, I discovered that my dad had left this popcorn popper behind.

For years, popcorn had been a comfort food to me.  Heber would joke at the beginning of our marriage that if he came home to the smell of popcorn, he knew that something bad had happened.  I think it was a small way that my dad could tell me that it was going to be ok.

Now, the popper did not die and I was relieved because I wasn't ready to let it go.

So that's the memory I'll share on this Father's Day week.  As I mother, I see more clearly the challenges of knowing how to show a child love in a way that will meet their needs.  I appreciate my dad and all he's given me but especially that first day of college.