Dad

[monoflo]

Wow this thread is mostly a testimonial to the dying art of being a a good Dad!

It seems clear to me that the father figure in the positive sense is reallly important in raising good kids --maybe even more so for boys.

Weird that society gives out a lot of signals that DaDs are not important ( a great Dad doesn't have to be biologically related even)- just look at commercials and the general feminization of everything.

I was blessed to get to know my old man as a guy at least a little bit before he passed 20+ years ago. He was like a lot of guys from the WW2 generation -did not show his emotions outright but somehow got all his points across and never really complained when thngs got tough.

I just watch my grandsons with their Dads and it really reinforces the importance. Makes me try to be the G-Pa I always wished I had.

Thks

Mflo

[Geronimo '74]

My dad is my hero.

[flatbutt]

My son is expecting his first child this summer. We had dinner the other night to celebrate. At one point he looked me in the eye,raised his glass and said " I know Mom devastated you in the divorce Dad, but you never abandoned me, you were always there for me. Thanks Dad". I nearly lost it.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

My son is expecting his first child this summer. We had dinner the other night to celebrate. At one point he looked me in the eye,raised his glass and said " I know Mom devastated you in the divorce Dad, but you never abandoned me, you were always there for me. Thanks Dad". I nearly lost it.

You are both fortunate sons.

Best.

[LSA]

I'll never forget that.
I took a little while and one day and told my dad what I thought of him as a father I'm so glad I did because if I didn't that day I probably never would have and it would of bothered me forever.

Dads rock!

[ddbach]

I look at the job some of my friends are doing with their kids and realise how much work 4 of us were for my dad. He did an awesome job. We are all gainfully employed with an excellent awareness that money does not grow on trees. None of us are in debt beyond a mortgage and a reasonable car payment. None of us suffer from the overbearing sense of entitlement I see in many individuals.

Sadly my dad is steadily disappearing from the ravages of dementia. His 80yo brother, a Viet Nam vet, passed away a month ago from liver cancer. I have to re-explain it to him each week since then when he says, "We should go visit H." This week he couldn't figure out his electric razor either.

Tell them you love them while you have them and they can remember it.

[Oh Haha]

Originally Posted by ddbach

I look at the job some of my friends are doing with their kids and realise how much work 4 of us were for my dad. He did an awesome job. We are all gainfully employed with an excellent awareness that money does not grow on trees. None of us are in debt beyond a mortgage and a reasonable car payment. None of us suffer from the overbearing sense of entitlement I see in many individuals.

Sadly my dad is steadily disappearing from the ravages of dementia. His 80yo brother, a Viet Nam vet, passed away a month ago from liver cancer. I have to re-explain it to him each week since then when he says, "We should go visit H." This week he couldn't figure out his electric razor either.

Tell them you love them while you have them and they can remember it.

I am so glad my dad didn't have to suffer from anything like this. His body was weak but his mind was still strong.

Condolences on the loss of your uncle. Hang in there for your pops.

[dw1]

My dad is..... well, I can't really put it into words. Everything I try to say or write seems isn't enough.

With my girls, I went through roughly the following sequence:

- dad as the other person always in the house

- dad as hero & source of knowledge

- dad is clueless

- dad as walking ATM

- hey, maybe dad has some wisdom after all

[fred cook]

that I did as a Dad when my son was small (6 yrs old) was to enroll both of us in a martial arts class. We had the opportunity to train and practice together and go to tournaments. Between going to 3 classes a week and practicing at home, we had tons of that "quality time" together that seems to be so important. As the years went by we trained and promoted to each belt level together up to 3rd Degree Black Belt. Since so much of martial arts revolves around the life skills of honor, integrity, self respect, self control, perserverence, etc. that we developed a natural respect for one another that still exists today. When he got to be a teenager, there were none of the battles that most parents have with their teenagers. While he was growing up, he knew what his primary job in life was, to work hard and get good grades in school, not get into trouble, etc. The skills that he learned early on helped him (and me) to achieve his educational and social goals such that he was accepted into Georgia Tech, studied hard and graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is now working in the engineering department of a major aircraft manufacturer.

My dad was special also. I remember him walking into our garage one Saturday while he was working on one of our cars, and while standing in the middle of the garage, looking around. I asked him what he was looking for and he said, "I don't know, but I will know when I see it." And, as usuall, he eventually spotted a small box of miscellaneous parts and found a piece that he could make work. Later, after I had been in the Navy, we used to sit on the porch and swap "war stories". He had been in the India/Burma/China theatre for about 2 years during WWII and had some great war stories about the Burma/Ledo road. I guess the thing that hit me the hardest after he died was that all of a sudden, I was the senior generation! Wow, how did that happen so fast? Now, where did that box of parts go?

Regards,

[kimlangley7]

I'm fortunate [in many respects] >. I still have my Dad.. He's turning 90 on 17 MAR... He was a career Army [Airborne Infantry] man .. He did 3 wars > WW-II Pacific [New Guinia, Phillippines - 5 beachheads].. he did Korea and he did Vietnam...

He is a great Father - mentor, friend... the older I got > the smarter he got... He was tough on us kids.. but I see the method to his madness...

He wasn't into cars that much > just put gas in them.. I've bonded with my boys via cars [as well as other stuff]...

[oldE]

Mysteries from my youth:

If my Dad only had grade school and a year of mechanical trade college, how did he get to be so wise?

How could my Father's eyes say so much? He could stop me in my tracks, make me laugh or feel pride with a look.

How could Dad remember all those great stories?

One of the things I feel good about is realizing how much this man meant to me and telling him how much I loved him before he passed.

To the memory of our Fathers
Thank you Dad
Les

[Bill Douglas]

I think to be a good dad, don't try to be too much of a hero, just rock solid and consistant.
Generally a decent person. That would do the trick.