Great Dads are GREAT

I had a great dad. 

His favorite color was green. 

My mother says when she got pregnant with me my father thought he wanted a boy.

Somewhere between my delivery and her recovery he saw me and he changed his mind. He did not give up on his dream of having a son but he went all out becoming the great dad of a baby girl.

He insisted on cloth diapers among other things my mother tells me.

He was a quiet man with those he did not know. To his family he became known, eventually as the man who could talk your ear off but many who did not live in our houses have a hard time believing that.

My daughter grew to know and love my father as both a grandfather as well as a place holder for the father she barely knew and who has never quite risen up to be the leadership figure she needs in her life.

My dad was a simple guy. Hard working and good natured he enjoyed spending time with his family. I think our youth brought him joy. He was so patient with me and then my daughter.

Sadly I think the role my dad played in my life was a tad understated such that it took a few years of being out on my own to really appreciate him. 

It doesn’t hurt that I see so many men failing to step up to the plate and be good fathers to the children they bring into the world. It hurts my heart. My dad made it look so easy.

He showed up

He took an interest and responsibility

He did not nag and fuss

He knew how to have fun

He showed me things

He helped me if I needed or asked him to

He challenged my thinking
He exposed me to new things

He talked to me listened with a caring ear

When I felt threatened he protected me

My dad did not know everything neither did he ever claim to. Still there was a lot of knowledge he had to share with me along the way while I was growing up.

It was my father who showed me how to cook. Scrambled eggs, bacon and toast was the first meal he instructed me in. This is as much about cooking the proteins as it is about timing each element so they can be served together hot.

One year we planted a garden. Another year he cut a panel out of the wall in my parents’ bedroom and installed a sliding glass door.

One day I came home I guess from school and he was painting my room…pink without me even having to ask. 

DREAMY 

I loved that.

He had a wild adventure of a life, seeing the world courtesy of the US military, marrying an island girl and owning a home in California, two kids and a granddaughter. 

Who could have asked for much more?

RIP Filder L Johnson 3/12/2006