Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to all you dads out there. I hope this Fathers Day is the best! Having been a father for over 28 years now, I can say few things give me greater pleasure then spending time with my sons. I was fortunate enough to have 3 sons! Nothing against daughters but I always wanted sons. Some of my most favorite memories is playing games around the table with them and their mother. I also loved watching them play sports. I never was able to stay in the stands and watch. I always had to get up and walk up and down the sidelines. Of course it was important that they won the game but even more important to me was that they were having fun and felt connected to the team. I remember special moments when I got to spend one on one time with each of my boys. The first time my middle son broke a board with his fist. (he had been taking karate) The camping trip I took with my oldest boy near the lake. The first time my youngest rode a bike without training wheels. All very special moments to me. I wish I had a photographic memory so I could recall every little look, comment, laugh, and tear of my boys when they were so young and vulnerable. I am reminded often of these moments with the expressions, comments, laughs, and tears of my grandson. I encourage my grandson often throughout the day to run faster, jump higher, laugh louder, and imagine bigger. I'm sure I did that with my own sons but I don't remember them all. I only hope that the encouragement I gave them is something that will come back to their memories as they spend time with their own kids and the words of encouragement will be multiplied over and over again.

I'm Dad -- I'm just saying, encourage your kids.

Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. So the childhood saying went. As far as physical damage is concerned, I suppose the saying is true. But as far as emotional or psychological is concerned, words can do far more damage then a mere broken bone. Not to get all religious but the Bible tells us that our words speak life or death to situations, people's lives, people's health, relationships, etc...... It also tells us that the hardest muscle to control or train is the tongue. I know that I have not always spoken life to those around me and looking back I regret it. But as I have gotten older, I have tried to be more encouraging and speak more kindly to those who are a part of my life. Of course words spoken while driving in traffic with my windows up and nobody else in the truck with me, don't count. I think of being in the truck alone as neutral ground where normal rules of engagement don't apply. It bothers me when I hear people call each other names, especially children. Whether it is one child calling another stupid or an adult calling the child a brat, it really gets under my skin. I know that the feelings of the person calling the name at the time are just temporary and they probably don't mean any real harm. But the words can have a lasting effect on that child especially if they are spoken on a regular basis. For the most part, children believe what we tell them about themselves. They may not believe us when we tell them they like spinach, but if we tell them over and over again that they are a brat or smart, they will accept it as true and act accordingly. One of my favorite names for my boys was "goober gut". It really has no meaning and isn't derogatory. When our boys were young, "shut up" wasn't allowed to be said. So they would say "be quiet in a mean way". So cleaver! One of my favorite sayings is "Choose your words wisely and make the sweet. You never know which ones you eat". I encourage you to really listen to the words that come out of your mouth today and make them life giving. I'm Dad--and I'm just saying........... words.

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