Happy Father's Day to my Dad: the Best! (Manly Man W/O)
Jun 14 '03
The Bottom Line So, what is a Manly Man? I believe, he is many things. He can be tough, rugged, cultured, sensitive, or a mixture of all of these traits! Gotta love 'em!
(Thanks to HawgWyld and Joubert on the occasion of their Epinions anniversaries for hosting this: THE MANLY MAN Write-Off.) Please see: http://www.epinions.com/user-hawgwyld or http://www.epinions.com/user-joubert and char.mike ...for more information about the Write-Off.
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"What's a man now, what's a man mean? Is he rough or is he rugged? Is he cultural and clean?" Joe Jackson, Real Men
Let me start off by saying that both of my parents are the best parents I could ever have hoped to have! I was so fortunate to be born to them and I count my blessings everyday. They have always put their family first. They have just recently celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary and their love and respect for each other is very apparent. Their marriage is a great example to us, their kids.
A little background on my Dad His own father died when my Dad was only 9 years old. His mother (my grandmother) was left to raise 5 children alone. This early family hardship contributed to him having a strong sense of responsibility.
My Dad (John) has always been a good provider to his family. He is very responsible and even though he married my Mom at the young age of 22, he always worked hard to provide for his family. My parents had 4 children. I am their oldest.
John has worked in one profession for 49-1/2 years and for one firm for 38 of those years. After graduating from college, he started out with that one company and worked hard. He had to travel quite a bit over the years, as it was a sales job and this was required of him. As kids, we always thought he must have fun doing all that traveling, but he told us it was definitely not fun, going from airport to rental car, to hotel, to do his job and back to the airport, etc., and living out of a suitcase. (He would even occasionally take us along when we got older, so we could see what it was like.) It was not easy on my Mom either, having to bear the brunt of the responsibility of having 4 kids to take care of. Somehow though, my parents did it and they did it well.
My Dad worked so hard that within a few years, he was promoted to District Sales Manager. Wow, that covered a large area. But just some years later, after more hard work, he was promoted yet again, to Regional Sales Manager, which was an even larger territory, with more people to supervise and more responsibility. His promotions were always very well-deserved and his supervisors recognized his dedication, capabilities and intelligence. He was ambitious, but never to the point of walking on people.
Through it all, my Dad has remained one of the most honest people I know. I have never known my Dad to lie or cheat anyone. INTEGRITY should be his middle name.
After working as Regional Sales Manager of the Midwest Region for some years time, my Dad was promoted to a Sales Training position at the company headquarters. This meant another move for us, this time to the East Coast. Although he liked his new job, he missed being out in the field, doing what he did best...working with people and sales. So he asked for a transfer to the Western Region, located in California, where he continued working, moving the Western Region into the top national sales category in the company for many years. He definitely knows what he is doing, both with the products and people.
Through all the years, my Dad somehow found the time to be a leader in the Indian Guides troop my brother belonged to as a boy. We all went on wonderful family vacations (How many miles are we driving today, Dad? ...Only 425 to Mount Rushmore? YAY!), and had birthdays that we'll never forget. He finished our basements off with drop ceilings, carpeting and paint, so they became comfy "family rooms" to hang out in. My parents sure had their priorities straight and they have passed this legacy down to us, their kids.
Some years ago, Dad decided to take an early retirement at the age of 59, when the company he had worked so hard for, offered him the "golden handshake". Not liking retirement much, after that, he went back to work on a part-time basis, at a similar type of company. He decided he liked keeping busy, but no longer wanted quite as much responsibility. This suited my Mom just fine also, because it gave them more freedom to travel and pursue other interests. He has dedicated himself and worked just as hard at this second company for over 10 years ...until recently.
Dad was "let go" this April because the company he had been working for, for over 10 years decided to let him go. To simplify it, there were other extenuating circumstances with a supervisor who is hell bent on climbing the ladder of success no matter who gets in her way, and unfortunately, she felt that my dear Dad had a "bad attitude" (furthest thing from the truth). Anyway, without getting into details and having this sound like sour grapes, Dad is moving on with his life. He has a love of people and a gift of giving and he will succeed no matter what he decides to do next. He is not yet ready to slow down, not quite ready to retire completely. My reason for mentioning this is because I feel it is too bad that he couldn't choose his own retirement date perhaps at 50 years. It just wasn't meant to be.
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No, my Dad doesn't chop wood, chew tobacco, or ride Harley's, so in that sense of the word, "manly man", he doesn't fit the mold, but in my eyes, he is a very manly man because he is honest, sensitive and caring. He is a real man, a gentleman and a loving husband and a great father.
Happy Father's Day and Happy Birthday Dad...I love you! .......Your #1 daughter, g.
(P.S. Happy Father's Day to all Dad's, stepdads, brothers and uncles and anyone else who sometimes fills the big shoes that Dads wear!)
~Thanks for reading...~gael
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