'The Surprise Father's Day'

IT was Saturday and Liana's Dad didn't have to work so he took her and her little sister Kelsi on a walk by the river. It was a warm and sunny day and the water made a gurgling sound as it hit against the rocks that were in it. The sand was warm and white and had lots of small stones. Liana's little sister found a flat sandy place and sat down. Right away she started to make a circle of small pebbles. But Liana trotted along the soft earth of the river bank under the bright blue sky with her dad. She picked up an egg-shaped pebble and threw it, kerplunk, trying to see how far out on the river she could throw it.

Her dad picked up a flat pebble. "Here, I'll show you how to skip a stone." He turned, put his arm behind him and threw the stone sideways at the water. It didn't fall kerplunk like Liana's had. It hit the water and "skipped" up into the air, sailed along then fell into the water. "Now you try," her dad said.

Liana looked carefully for some small, flat stones. She found a gray speckled one and an almost black one and a couple others. Then she threw them, one at time. Most of them went kerplunk but one actually skipped which made Liana skip too -- with joy. She looked for more flat stones, which her dad said worked best. One was very light gray and flat on both sides. She put it in her pocket to take home and use later. Then she went to play with her sister Kelsi, who had found some dandelions with seed puffs. Liana and Kelsi each took a stem and blew on the seeds until they floated away.

Next morning was Sunday and while her dad was at the breakfast table drinking coffee, Kelsi brought him a blue tissue paper wrapped package "It's for you, Daddy. I made it in kindergarten!" she bounced around saying, "Happy Daddy's Day!" It was a piece of clay with Kelsi's hand impressed on it. It had a hard, shiny surface where Kelsi had printed her name. "That's wonderful, Kelsi-boo." Daddy hugged her and gave her a big kiss.

Liana was so shocked, she couldn't even speak. They didn't make anything like that in third grade and no one told her that today was Father's Day.