It’s been a busy week with graduation ceremonies and celebrations and now we get to look forward to honoring our dad’s this Sunday.
As I read through all the “On the Spot” answers we have in our print version of the newspaper, I smile at how many people are
proud of their dad. One answer that hit close to home for me was the answer, “being the
best provider under the circumstances.” This response made me pause and think
of my own father, who passed away at the age of 90.
Although my dad was not a bad father, he certainly would
have never won a “Father of the Year” award. But, despite that, I do believe he
did the best he could with what was available to him during his lifetime.
I didn’t always believe this statement, however. But as I
have grown up and experienced some of my own hardships and mistakes, I’m not
quite as critical now. In fact, I think I have become more understanding of the
challenges my father faced and my heart has soften towards him.
Growing up during the Great Depression and the challenges
faced by his family, set the stage and the perception of what a good father was
supposed to be. I suspect he really did believe he was doing the best that he
could. And for this reason, I want to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Additionally, there was a lot of good about my father. He
believed in me in ways I never quite understood. Hoping I would be the next
Patsy Cline, he gave me a guitar at the age of 10 – ignoring the fact that I
was and am tone deaf and can’t carry a tune. He gave me four awesome brothers
who are always there for me in a heartbeat. He taught me to drive – a car and a
John Deere tractor. He encouraged my love of travel and exploration. And, in a
way – he taught me to see the good in people, and thus him.
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