Our stories live in our bones.  In our cells.  In our hearts.  In our minds.  In our guts.  In our memorys.  In our mothers.  In our fathers.

This Father's Day week, as I was picking out a card for my dad, one that will honor him and what he means to me, it got me thinking about how entrenched he is in my own story, and about how our actions, decisions, attitudes, beliefs and our very lives, are a culmination of all of our stories as well the tales of our greatest influencers, including the good, bad and ugly. 

My dear friend Tina Alexis Allen has done more than buy a card in honoring her dad with her "one-man" show, "Secrets of a Holy Father," which she wrote and stars in.  By transforming herself into him, Tina takes her father's journey through life and the afterlife, confronting and embracing the many layers that encompassed her secretive father.  What comes out of this for Tina is an incredible tour-de-force performance from the heart.  She's honoring not only the tough and loving memory of her father but also those parts of her that are stronger because of her relationship with him. 

Tina is workshopping her show in New York next month in preparation for a full Off-Broadway production this fall!  Check out the clip on her fundraising site to get a flavor of her powerful performance.

Everyone has their own experience and sense for what father means in them.  What's important is to look at the strengths and fibers that live in you now as a result of those experiences.  

For me, a sense of father means knowing I can accomplish whatever I set my mind to, that respect for self and others is paramount, that my attitude is the one thing in any given situation that I can control and that family is the most important thing.  

Thanks, Dad.

So, take a few moments this week and honor what father means to you, in you. 

Happy Father's Day.