"When a father gives to
his son, both laugh; when a son gives to his father, both cry."
~William Shakespeare
~William Shakespeare
My father had a stroke 18 1/2 years ago, 6 weeks after my son, DJ Hepburn was born. My son never got to meet his "real" grandfather, only the one that was left after the stroke. I wish that my son would have gotten to know who my father was, because it would have helped him figure out who he is.
One thing that never changed about my father after his stroke was his attitude! Even though he was handicapped, Dad still went to the gym almost every day. Now the "workout" consisted of talking to everyone else there, but it was Dad's workout!! When they moved, the gym at Paradise Valley Community College had a going away party for him!! He always had a smile and an attempt at a good word.
One thing that never changed about my father after his stroke was his attitude! Even though he was handicapped, Dad still went to the gym almost every day. Now the "workout" consisted of talking to everyone else there, but it was Dad's workout!! When they moved, the gym at Paradise Valley Community College had a going away party for him!! He always had a smile and an attempt at a good word.
There are so many things that he taught me without teaching me but by showing me. There are so many things that I want to talk to him about but I can't because he while he can understand what I'm saying, he can't get the words right to reply, and this frustrates him to no end. Even though he is still with us I feel that part of me died when he had his stroke. It's a part that I can never get back and I miss him and that part of me.
Something I regret is not taking the time to spend more time with him before he had his stroke. Yes, there was distance (miles) between us but there was the phone. We never really talked about things like my mom wants to 'cause we were men! Men didn't talk about things!!
My father was always "the rock." No matter what, Dad would be the calm in the storm. For those of you who know my mother, you can understand. The best public acknowledgment I ever gave my father was at an event that my mother was running (around 500 people there) and we were asked to say who we were thankful for. I walked up to the platform and took the microphone and said "I'm really thankful for my Dad, because my Mom is so outgoing that if it weren't for my Dad, we would be all out gone!" (start of my public speaking career...lol)
Dad, I love you! I'm becoming that man that you are...it hasn't been easy because you set such a high standard to reach!
"I am a living legacy to the leader of the band."
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