Every year around Father’s Day, I think about how lucky I am to have grown up watching someone build a life around doing what they love. I joke with my friends that my dad is a unicorn, but it’s not really a joke. He is one.

My dad has always lived life on his own terms. He got an Ivy League education only to realize that what he really wanted was to run a gift shop. He lived on communes in the ’60s and ’70s. He marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for civil rights. And now, nearly five decades later, he’s still the proud owner of The Unicorn, a small, magical gift store in the heart of Woodstock, Vermont.

As a kid, I got to work alongside him. I’d help polish jewelry, ring up customers, and restock the shelves. I saw up close what it looks like to build something with love. The Unicorn wasn’t just a shop. It was (and still is) a reflection of all the things that bring my dad joy: art, fun, surprise, craftsmanship, and community. It was like another child in his life.

And he showed up for it every single day.

That’s the part that gets me. That quiet consistency. The way he never treated it like a job but a calling. That’s the biggest lesson my dad gave me: do what you love. Let your life reflect who you really are. Build something that brings you and the people around you joy.

Today, I run my own small business. And every time I walk into the Botnia lab write a formula or connect with our esthetician community, I feel his spirit with me. I feel that legacy. His unicorn magic. And I hope I’m passing a little of that along to my daughter, too.

This Father’s Day, I’m sending love to all the incredible fathers out there and to anyone who has shown up in that fathering role. You don’t have to be a dad to be a father. If there’s someone in your life who’s nurtured you, supported you, and inspired you, I hope you get to honor them in some special way.

And to my dad: thank you. For your courage, your creativity, your consistency. For showing me that a life built with heart is the most beautiful life of all. And most importantly, his words of wisdom." Never grow up - it's a trap."

Happy Father’s Day.

With love,
Justine