I have talked about my relationship with my dad numerous times within the pages of CC. I cannot say enough of how much of a positive influence he has had on my life. His patience, understanding and generosity has made me a much better person than had he not come into my life. He is the reason that I write this blog, as I did not attend USC and he did. So while my passion for USC is forged through different experiences, other than having attended SC, they are no less passionate than those who did attend SC.
I love what I do for a living and had I not been stationed on the east coast during my last commitment to the Navy I'm not sure that I would be in this field. But because of that opportunity to do this great job the price I have paid is not being able to go to the games with my dad like I used to when I was younger or just hang out to have a catch or play some golf. Those were absolutely great times!
As my wife and I raise our daughter I will draw upon those life experiences that I experienced and learned from my dad and I can only hope that I can do half as good a job as he did with me. God knows I am far from perfect but we all try to strive to be better. People often say that want to have more for their kids than they had for themselves. I'm not sure that I can live up to that as my dad did so much for me and has given me so much, not materialistically speaking, that he will be a tough act to follow. Just trying to match all that he has done for me, as we raise Emma, will be a daunting task in and of itself.
We all have stories about our fathers, each one unique in how it shows us a small glimpse of one of the two people who have done so much for us in shaping our respective lives. There is no one Best dad as to each of us our dad IS the best. As I watch Emma crawl around my feet as I write this I can't wait for her to experience the love that her grandfather has for her, as I hope that she gets to experience all that I have with this fine man. He is far better at being a dad than I will ever be.
I Love You Dad!