Now that I have your attention with the loaded title… I guess you could say that about anyone. Since this is Father’s Day I thought I’d reflect (in writing) about my Dad and who I thought he was and what he meant to me. My Dad was a working class guy who served in the Marines during World War II and as they say, once a Marine, always a Marine. He was a tough task master when I was growing up. He could be abrupt, sarcastic and tough… when I was growing up, I remember the tough part most of all. My grandfather died when my Dad was just 7 and he was the sole bread winner during the Depression so it goes without saying how difficult my own father’s childhood must have been. Raised by his widowed mom and mainly only females in his life, from the Marines he learned about being a man. Those lessons he carried forward to his role as father and raised my brothers and I to have the same grit as mini Marines. Not necessarily the discipline aspect but definitely the grit.
He was a blue collar worker and worked as a printer his whole professional life. When I was a young teen I remember asking him if he ever thought about being in management and he said why would anyone want those headaches… he had found a contentment in his job and was happy with it. Not many can say that. We didn’t grow up with a lot but we didn’t need for anything. I learned the important difference between want and need. When he was in his early 50’s he passed out at work, on the third level of a printing press that he could have easily fallen into… they pried his unconscious fingers from the railing when rescue came to treat him. Again, a life’s lesson in grit 101. Shortly after was the end of his working career. He spent a lot of his retirement time floating around the pool with a cooler of beer on the side. Somehow I think the sun must have frozen the toughness a bit and he became a pushover for my daughters. They could get all the hugs and kisses Poppy wanted to give. A grandfathers lessons in love passed to the next generation.
As I grew older and had children of my own, I started to appreciate everything he had done. I’m not saying he was perfect. No one on Earth since JC can make that claim but he provided and did the best he could with the lessons he learned. I was fortunate to get very close to my Dad as an adult. He showed me strength, courage, and humor in the most difficult situations. He taught me how to be a man. The individual my Dad had become was the man I hoped to emulate. Again… not perfect.. he knew how to tip back a few beers, liked to gamble and was still tough when the situation called for but overall a very decent man. The kind of guy I would have been friends with no matter if we were related. He became my best friend and for the time I had with him to share and grow in that relationship, I will always be grateful. It has been almost 7 years since my Dad passed and I often think about him. I miss him but I know my Dad loved me and he knew I loved him.
Happy Fathers Day in memory of my Dad and for all the Dad’s. To all the children reading this… reach out for your Dad and know he’s just a man doing the best that his lifes lessons have taught him.
