About a month ago, I wrote a Mother’s Day Blog, at the time I didn’t plan on writing this one, but I think the occasion deserves it.  Yeah… it’s after Father’s Day, but the internet went out and I wasn’t able to talk to pops.  But here it is… a blog for dad, written from a mountain top, by a fire, under an open sky, on the other side of the world.

Yeah…  I travel a bit, it’s something he instilled in me.

He’s done a lot that goes unmentioned and unnoticed.  Most people don’t know the hard work he’s put into our family.  Many people remember him more for the man he USED to be, not the man he’s become and becoming.


He doesn’t seek the praise, but a little appreciation and thanks go a long way.

He’s had a rough go of it the last year or so, caught some tough breaks, and I know he’s wondering what’s next, but he’s holding strong.

I’m writing this blog to let you all know, because I know he does, that I’m proud that he’s my dad.   And I’m proud that he’s my mom’s husband.  And, though he may not often receive the affirmation of it, he’s a great son.

He’ll be the first to admit that the man he was wasn’t the man he should have been, but he didn’t settle for a verbal admission.  He did something much more valuable.

He changed… and he’s still growing.


 Potentially, the most important thing he’s ever given to me, other than his love, is vision.  And I see him taking the effort to do that for my little cousins Curtis and Brittany, who haven’t really been shown that as much in their lives.

His example taught me to have a vision bigger than my circumstances.  He taught me by example to look beyond the situation I’m in, and that there’s something more out there.  He’s always searching, always seeking a better way to provide for our family the best he knows how.

Even though, I know, he’s got nothing more to prove.

He, and my mom, have sacrificed and changed so much about their lives for me.  We never had much, but I never even remotely lacked.

He taught me the value of an attitude that says, “If you’re gonna bother doing it, take the time to do it well.”

As men sometimes there’s this hang up with being emotional with each other.  It’s a lie fed into by our society that has led many to lose the definition of what a man is.  But I’ve always known he loved me. It’s never been in question.  And one of the great joys of my life is that, as I’ve grown into manhood, our relationship has had that open door for him to tell me he loves me and vice versa.

He, along with mom, have always had a more “detailed” view of my wellbeing than I have.  “CHEW YOUR FOOD, DON’T SWALLOW IT WHOLE.”  “Sit up straight man, I’m telling you, you’ll notice it when you’re my age.”  “I’m tellin ya… Take care of your back/knees/feet /____ man.”  But that’s what good parents do.  They look beyond the box their children see in, and drop “pearls” of wisdom and life experience in.

But of all the things I’m proud of my dad for, and of all the reasons I’m proud to have him as a father, what I’m most proud of is the man that I know he is and can become.  He’s never settled for the lie that you cannot grow or improve your situation.  But his growth in God is what I desire the most for him.  His, though often private, seeking of God is the most encouraging thing for me, and because I know our Father in heaven has told us “Seek and you shall find,” I have great confidence that the more He is sought the more He will be found.  And, as great of a father and husband has he has been and become, there’s no limit to the father and husband and grandfather (“Lord Willin’”) he’ll become as he grows deeper with Jesus and what being a son of God means.

And THAT is beyond exciting.