On Saturday, Oct. 24, I had the opportunity to attend the Father Daughter Mass and Breakfast with my dad, the Vice President of the Dad’s Club. My sister had attended the event three times in previous years so I had only heard great things about it and had my hopes high.

However, when I woke up that day I looked over at my window and saw my homecoming dress hung. I got very excited for the night ahead, thinking about all my friends coming over to get ready and the pre-party I was going to attend. I guess you could say that my mind was in a different place  than the Father Daughter Mass.

We were a couple minutes late and my hair was a mess since the top was down in our convertible (No, I didn’t have a hair tie!). When we arrived at Xavier, we took pictures and I prepared to read at mass. Father Kevin gave a lovely service, after which the dads and daughters went to Founders’ Hall to eat breakfast and listen to an alumna speak. I was so excited for food that the President of the United States could have been speaking and I would still have stuffed the fruit and bacon into my mouth.

The speaker was Anne Marie Hubbard ‘95, who was a basketball and cross country star during her time at Xavier. She and her father spoke about how their relationship had transformed over the years. She also discussed how high school had changed her perspective on things. Hubbard said, “We all know challenges are a part of life, but they are easy to handle when you have friends and family,” a message I could relate to.

Hubbard also described how her relationship with God had improved during high school. “The days that I least want to go to mass are the days I get the strongest message,” she joked.

After her speech, I asked Hubbard about her Xavier experience. She said that she and her father ended up growing apart toward the end of her high school years. “I just wanted to go to college and have a fresh start,” she said.

Hubbard said that she couldn’t single out any one year at Xavier as her favorite because every year had given her new opportunities. She left me with some good advice: “High school is a great opportunity to start your life, and start your relationship with your dad.”

Our conversation caused me to consider all the times I’ve pushed my parents away in the past: the times they invited me to go to the store with them or watch a football game, and I stayed in my room instead. I realized I need to be more open to them, and am grateful that I could start transforming my relationship with my dad at Xavier this Saturday.