A Visit with Dad

As my title implies, I am at the beginning of another visit with my father. Now that we have moved to Tennessee, we get to have more visits with Dad than his yearly visit to his sons in Florida.  He continues to drive a Semi 5 days a week and now he uses his visits to see his kids in Tennessee as his mini vacations. For now he gets to see all his kids in one visit since my sister and I live in the same city and less than two miles apart.

He is known to avoid major highways and probably has seen more of this country, than most of us, due to this habit. My mother use to complain about taking longer to get to my house each year because Dad could not stay on the major highway. Truth be known, I believe her complaining simply inspired him to find alternative routes even more.

Dad was always a little of a mystery to me, growing up in rural Missouri.  His laid back approach to life was simply confusing to me. You see, I tend to take after my mother, Type AA, if you know what I mean. So growing up, I just never got, who this man was and how he just seem to not be bothered by anything.  I know now that part of this appearing not to be bothered is a fantastic performance,  he only lets a few in to see the real man.

As now as we get to spend more time together, I learn a little more about how his simple yet complex approach to life has developed.  He simply keeps himself on a schedule and does what needs to be done to maintain his well being and his way of life. I look back now and see that this way of life has always been his approach. You see as a young man with his Mother's Type AA approach to life, I just could not understand how he could just let someone do him wrong and he just shrug it off as a learning experience with that individual.

What I did not understand is he would adjust how he dealt with that individual to the point that they had no direct bearing on him or his family. The slow approach to conflict resolution was something I could not grasp. I understand now that it was his down to earth upbringing by his grandparents that instilled this man with the wisdom to let the world unfold around you and you choose what fits into your life. It is this understanding of my father that has brought us closer over the past 5 years. I have a better understanding of his relationship with my mother, it was their differences that complimented each other and brought out the best in each of them.

I realize how much I still have to learn from this man, my Father, my Dad and my friend.  I now understand how part of each parent is instilled in my actions and how I perceive the world around me. My goal is to find the perfect balance of both and turn it into my own unique way of dealing with life. 

Keep Dancin’ Larry B.