A Day in the Life of: Dad

Dad said that in order to have this blog, I would have to praise him to the skies. He was teasing of course. Nevertheless, this Sunday being Father's Day, I figured I would do it anyway. So, in this post, I'd like to talk a little bit about how much my Dad means to me, and what's he's taught me, and how much I appreciate him.

Dad means an awful lot to me. I mean, in the words of the hymn, "Without him, I would be nothing!"

Dad always loves to play games with us kids. When we were smaller, he'd tell us about the California peaches. Those peaches were sum'pin else! They were so huge that you couldn't see past them! Not only that, they were so sweet and juicy, that if you even looked at them, they'd squirt you. If one of them accidentally fell off it's leafy resting place, it would create another Death Valley or a Mariana Trench! We still enjoy joking about this. Dad is something I would call a "Good-memories maker."

Over the years, I think one of the best things Dad ever taught me was the little axiom, "Work before you play," and "Don't leave the work area until the work is done," and "Do it right the first time so you won't have to do it again." For me, these life principles have really been very freeing. You really can have a lot more time to do fun things, if you do the chores first; and correctly. If you work before playing, your work will be all done and you won't have to come back and do it later or worry about it. And, doing something over because you were lazy the first time doesn't save anytime. I love the way my Dad, (and mom), teach us principles from the Bible. In this case, Ephesians 5:15-16 applies: "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. Redeeming the time, because the days are evil." A large part of "redeeming our time," is not wasting it. Doing something over again, or grumbling about it, is wasting precious time.

The other thing I really appreciate about Dad is his willingness to admit, and apologize for, his faults. (Oh, wait, Dad's perfect!) No, but really, it takes, I think, even more courage for an adult to say, "I'm sorry, I was wrong, will you forgive me," than for a child. Most parents probably make their children apologize at least once in their lives, but to do so on his/her own, takes a lot of courage. And I've heard that it takes more courage for a parent to apologize to his kids. I'm not sure quite how to explain it, but when my dad (and mom) have done this, it brings them up another large notch in my estimation and respect. Thanks Dad! I love you!

(This has been: A Day in the Life of: Dad. Tune in next time to read: Snippets of...")