On Sunday evening, I was given the task of constructing Isaiah's crib in Lydia's room. This was actually no problem at all. We did this instead of adjusting the height of Lydia's crib, and I am still convinced that it was easier and took less time than adjusting the height of Lydia's crib. Anyway, as I was working on this, Isaiah wanted to help. I thought it would be a good chance for bonding. And it was. We had a great time, and it probably took twice as long with Isaiah's "help" than if I would have done it without him.
This brings me to introduce a new feature at the Brother Lee...Question of the Week. Each week, I will inquire upon a topic, and you will respond. This week's question...
What is your favorite memory with your father?
The reason the first paragraph leads to this question is as follows. There is currently a commercial for some product/store (I don't know what) where this dad is working under the sink. A seven-ish year old kid walks in and asks if he can help. The dad says, sorry this is a one-person job. The kid starts walking away dejected, and the dad says, actually, could you hold the flashlight for me? Every time this commercial is on, it makes me very emotional because this is exactly what happened with my dad and me (except the initial rejection part) when I was growing up.
There were many days when dad was working on a project and my mom said I should go ask him if he needed help. So I would go and dad would have to figure out some way for me to help that would keep me from being in harm's way. And like Isaiah's help with the crib, some projects probably took longer with my help, especially when I was younger. But these are some of the best memories I have with my dad.
4 comments:
I am humbled by your latest blog, Ry. While it's true that things may have taken longer, I would not trade those times for anything. And by the way, you had a real knack for building stuff! Thanks for the memories, and thanks even more for the fact that you have them. That is a treasure to me. As the title of your entry says, it is so very true that you are "special".
I will add that the best memories I have of time with my dad (your grandpa) are games of playing pool in the basement. I think he even let me win sometimes!
I like the question of the week feature! I'd have to say my favorite times with dad were when we would play sports out in the front yard together. Learning to punt (and wondering how he got it to spiral), playing catch, and swinging the bat. That's what I think of as my best times. Makes me excited to teach these things to Isaiah.
And thanks for letting him help you with the crib!
What a great question and what a great journey of remembering this put me on. I have many great memories with my dad, but one of the best is how at the end of a hard working day he would suggest we get out the ball, bat, and gloves and play some baseball in the yard. He must have been very tired, but I never noticed. Also, his passionate prayer life in our midst made me very mindful of where the source of our true power was and has been part of my life.
Isn't it amazing how the times that we love the most with our dads are the ones when our dads let us do the work with him rather than simply sit back and watch him do it all. I feel like there is something theological in this all. Hmm...
Anyway, I think my favorite memories with my dad were traveling to different places growing and being the navigator as we would make our way through strange places. I was always amazed that he would trust me to try and lead us through these new places.
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