Today I am thankful for my dad. There is certainly the obvious reason that I without him I would not exist. So I am thankful for that but I am also very thankful for the job he did raising me. Now my dad wasn't perfect and I am sure if you asked him, he would tell you that there are things he wishes he would have done differently. Guess what, we are all like that.
But dad did teach me some things that are really important. They are things that helped me develop my character.
First of all, don't lie. I don't remember getting very many spankings from him but if you lied, that was a good way to get one. I got one for a lie/stealing combo sin once. That wasn't a fun one. I had been stealing money out of his wallet and out of mom's purse to go down to the police station and buy candy. I don't remember why I actually confessed. I think dad caught me and after I lied for a while, I finally came clean. I definitely was put on the straight and narrow for that incident.
Second, don't steal. See paragraph above.
Third, and very important, laugh often. My dad is a comedian. When he was in the Navy, he even got paid to do some comedy shows. This is evident in the way he does things even to this day. My dad can tell a story that will have everyone around him in stitches laughing. Now sometimes his stories aren't entirely true. He was an ambulance driver when I was a very young boy and he still loves to tell the stories from his time driving. Now all of these stories are definitely rooted in fact but there are normally minor embellishments around the fringe to make them even funnier. But the bible says, A merry heart doeth good like a medicine. When someone is in the hospital, he is the guy you want there with them because he is so good at cheering people up. Now this may seem minor to you but it has always been big to me because I don't think I am near as good at it as him.
Dad is definitely the guy you want around in a crisis situation. As I mentioned above, he is great at making people laugh and feel better about themselves. But I will also tell you that he was great at handling other types of crisis. God forbid you messed with one of Big John's family or friends in his younger days. That would be the start of a very bad day for you. I saw this side of him once when a neighbor tried to run me off the road. That guy has no idea how lucky he is to still be walking this earth today.
My dad also taught me about work ethic. I saw him work crazy amounts of hours when we were growing up. My dad taught me that you should always work hard and try your best. He was a security guard most of my life but he didn't act like most of the security personnel I had ever met. He acted like a professional. He did his job to the best of his ability. He went to work rain, sleet, snow or hail and whether he was sick or not. It didn't matter, he went and he always did a good job. He did this right up until the time he retired. I try to follow his example to this day.
Dad, at our cousin's funeral, I spoke and apparently said some pretty nice things. After that, I think you were joking but you asked me to speak at your funeral when the time came because you wanted me to say nice things about you too. Well, I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you them while you were still alive.
There are other things I could mention but I want to leave you with one final thing my dad has taught me. You are never too old to change. See, my mom took us to church all our lives. I don't remember going with my dad more than a handful of times ever. My mom and I have always been fairly faithful church going people.
It has only been in the last several years that dad started going to church. Because he started when he did, he showed me that you are never too late to change. Now a lot of people know me at my church for various reasons but my dad has turned out to be the most faithful church attender of our entire family.
Dad, thanks for all the life lessons: for chevrolets and fords, for eating mashed potatoes with your hands, for the wizard, for MASH and spaghetti, for going bowling with dip in your pocket, for playing spades with us growing up, for showing me how to cheer people up when they are in a tough place, for teaching me to do the right thing and for all the other things.
That's another Opinion of the Minion
But dad did teach me some things that are really important. They are things that helped me develop my character.
First of all, don't lie. I don't remember getting very many spankings from him but if you lied, that was a good way to get one. I got one for a lie/stealing combo sin once. That wasn't a fun one. I had been stealing money out of his wallet and out of mom's purse to go down to the police station and buy candy. I don't remember why I actually confessed. I think dad caught me and after I lied for a while, I finally came clean. I definitely was put on the straight and narrow for that incident.
Second, don't steal. See paragraph above.
Third, and very important, laugh often. My dad is a comedian. When he was in the Navy, he even got paid to do some comedy shows. This is evident in the way he does things even to this day. My dad can tell a story that will have everyone around him in stitches laughing. Now sometimes his stories aren't entirely true. He was an ambulance driver when I was a very young boy and he still loves to tell the stories from his time driving. Now all of these stories are definitely rooted in fact but there are normally minor embellishments around the fringe to make them even funnier. But the bible says, A merry heart doeth good like a medicine. When someone is in the hospital, he is the guy you want there with them because he is so good at cheering people up. Now this may seem minor to you but it has always been big to me because I don't think I am near as good at it as him.
Dad is definitely the guy you want around in a crisis situation. As I mentioned above, he is great at making people laugh and feel better about themselves. But I will also tell you that he was great at handling other types of crisis. God forbid you messed with one of Big John's family or friends in his younger days. That would be the start of a very bad day for you. I saw this side of him once when a neighbor tried to run me off the road. That guy has no idea how lucky he is to still be walking this earth today.
My dad also taught me about work ethic. I saw him work crazy amounts of hours when we were growing up. My dad taught me that you should always work hard and try your best. He was a security guard most of my life but he didn't act like most of the security personnel I had ever met. He acted like a professional. He did his job to the best of his ability. He went to work rain, sleet, snow or hail and whether he was sick or not. It didn't matter, he went and he always did a good job. He did this right up until the time he retired. I try to follow his example to this day.
Dad, at our cousin's funeral, I spoke and apparently said some pretty nice things. After that, I think you were joking but you asked me to speak at your funeral when the time came because you wanted me to say nice things about you too. Well, I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you them while you were still alive.
There are other things I could mention but I want to leave you with one final thing my dad has taught me. You are never too old to change. See, my mom took us to church all our lives. I don't remember going with my dad more than a handful of times ever. My mom and I have always been fairly faithful church going people.
It has only been in the last several years that dad started going to church. Because he started when he did, he showed me that you are never too late to change. Now a lot of people know me at my church for various reasons but my dad has turned out to be the most faithful church attender of our entire family.
Dad, thanks for all the life lessons: for chevrolets and fords, for eating mashed potatoes with your hands, for the wizard, for MASH and spaghetti, for going bowling with dip in your pocket, for playing spades with us growing up, for showing me how to cheer people up when they are in a tough place, for teaching me to do the right thing and for all the other things.
That's another Opinion of the Minion
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