At my father's funeral my best friend from childhood said to me "You know your father was like a father to me." I hadn't known that. My friend was raised by a single mother. He was constantly over at our house. He spent the night, went with us on trips, fishing, to the beach. In my narrow, childhood perspective, the only connection I ever saw was our friendship. Now I understood that he also craved the love of a father-figure. That need was met by my dad.