MY DAD, Talkin' Bout MY DAD

My Dad, Talkin' bout My Dad, that I must do with this post. No politics today, but about the man I admire who was my father. This Sunday is Father's Day, the day set aside to honor our Dads. My Dad was Harry Edward Lemon. A true southern gentleman with blondish hair and blue eyes. A man whose eyes would water and tears would form even at the age of eighty when he talked about his father. He was an honorable man in word and deed.

From my Dad, I learned many lessons of life that have formed the fiber of who I am. My Dad was an honest man to a fault!! I remember a time when as he aged worried that he might have cheated Social Security in some way. Nothing could have been further from the truth and I can't recall what issue caused him to worry with this but is was not true. When I think of folks who dishonestly draw Social Security in great numbers and feel entitled, I always reflect on my Dad. My Dad modeled a faultless work ethic for his family. He worked hard and worked long hours. He was a perfectionist at his work, doing a wonderful job and always being so neat. I recall him saying he would like to work until he could "no longer carry his weight" meaning couldn't do the job according to acceptable standards and then he would retire. I believe he was perhaps seventy-eight when he last worked. He was weeks short of his eighty-second birthday when he passed away.

My Dad taught me to drive -- on a straight shift car. It was quite an experience. He had been driving since he was a youngster and had only brothers. He probably thought I should think like a guy, I'm not sure. But he would take me up to the ball field not too far away and have me drive up a hill over and over so that I could properly learn to use the clutch. Getting all of that synched was not the easiest task for me but he had me prepared well enough to pass when we went for the test. Just another of those life skills he taught in helping me to be prepared with the skills to be able to live alone should I ever need.

It was hard to imagine how our Mom would manage without our Father. He was about ten and one-half years older than she therefore it seemed inevitable that someday she would have to face that. It was so painful for her when he passed away that it was difficult to encourage her to keep pushing forward. She was not in the best of health and passed away three years later. They made quite a wonderful pair that we are privileged to call Mom and Dad. We miss them and can always say that we were born "of goodly parents!"