My Amazing Father

There are a lot of great dads out there. There are also a lot of crummy ones...

I don't know why I got so lucky, but I got an amazing one!

When I was a teen my tune would have been a little different. But, when I was a teen I...... I was a teen. 'Nuff said. What I thought were masterfully crafted attempts to destroy my life, were actually firm and loving boundaries set in place in order to protect me from what he perceived as danger (and, looking back I can see that he was very wise in perceiving it as such).

These are just three of the reasons why I think that this man is the greatest.

1) He loves God.
     This has never been a question. I have always known it to be a fact. He is very devout, and he has made it his life calling to share his knowledge and love of God with my siblings and me. I am so grateful for this.

2) He loves my mother.
     In my whole life I have NEVER heard my father speak poorly about my mother. Not once! I truly believe that I am very lucky to have been raised in such a home. This is not to say that I have never seen him disagree with my mother or get upset. But any disagreement is resolved quietly, respectfully, and often with laughter. It's actually kind of fun to watch them become grandparents. They bicker about funny little things, and then laugh, and give each other a big smooch and move on.

3) He loves his children.
     This man would bend over backwards in order to support, understand, and help his children. He takes his fatherhood responsibility very seriously. As different hardships have taken their toll on myself and my siblings, I have witnessed him reach out with understanding and charity that has left me stunned. I'm kind of lucky in the fact that as the youngest of nine kids I've been the only one at home for a while. I've seen the behind the scenes of how he goes about supporting and helping his grown children with real, tough, sticky problems. And all I can say is that I hope I can be a father like him one day!

Now, my dad is not perfect, and I'm not claiming that he is.  But he is amazing! I will claim that. And I wouldn't trade him for the world. I'm lucky to have him, and I hope to have him around for a long long time! Even if he becomes an unbearably stubborn crotchety old man. . . And when I say if, I mean when. But those are the days I can look back on this post and remember that ornery or not, he rocks! ;)