A Father’s Day Reflection


As I stood behind my LTD station wagon I wondered, "when did this happen?" 

It was only a few short years before I was riding around on my motorcycle with hardly a care in the world. Yet, here I stood. I had just finished buckling the seatbelt on the car seat, and then closed my wife's door on our station wagon. As I circled the car to get in I paused at the rear of the vehicle, and for a brief moment thought about the dramatic change that had taken place in my life. I was now a husband and a father. We would soon add a second car seat to the vehicle. I had responsibilities. People were counting on me to come through.

Marriage and parenting can be a heavy load at times, but I would discover that it's all worth it.

The nights awake with a baby that won't stop crying? Worth it.

The tantrums of the toddler years? Worth it.

The effort it takes to grow in a marriage relationship for decades? Worth it.

The task of navigating your children through the teenage years? Worth it.

The financial challenges that supporting a family can bring? Worth it.

The years have flown by, and the baby boy in the car seat now buckles in his own babies. My boys are now men with wives of their own. As I reflect on this Father's Day there are a few things I would do differently if I could live my life again.

There's one thing I would never change. I would still walk around my wagon, get in the driver's seat, and I would smile.

The things of earth have never satisfied me, but the people who used to ride with me in the station wagon sure have. Thank you, Father, for the gift of my family.

Following the Son,

James A Williams

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

It’s My Turn To Be The Pop

Image
“ Children's children are a crown.” Proverbs 17:6 One year ago today my phone rang. I was looking forward to this call. “Hey, Dad. How are you?” “I’m alright.” (Standard response) He wasn’t alright. The cancer, chemo, and treatments had taken such a toll on him. This was Josiah’s birthday though. His first birthday. My Dad always called everyone in the family on their birthday and sang to them. He never missed anyone’s. It wasn’t pretty, and became a comical family joke yet we all looked forward to it.  I called for my son, Nathaniel, who brought his son, Josiah, over to the phone. I held the phone to Josiah’s ear and Nathaniel and I pressed in as we all listened to Dad sing. His voice was raspy and labored. Josiah’s eyes danced. Nathaniel and I smiled and laughed. Tears filled my eyes. He couldn’t stay on the phone long. He tired quickly and speaking was difficult. Josiah’s first time hearing his great grandfather sing Happy Birthday would also be his la...
Read more

What’s In Your Cart?

Image
On this day in 1939, Sylvan Goldman who owned the Humpty Dumpty supermarket chain got an idea. He was trying to think of a way for his customers to transport more groceries around his stores. He attached 4 wheels to the legs of a wooden folding chair, and then attached a basket to the seat. The shopping cart was born.  Before this shopping trips to the Humpty Dumpty or the Piggly Wiggly would be limited to what you could carry in your arms. I wonder if Sylvan’s original patent stated that one of the wheels was to either not spin or rapidly shake back and forth? It’s possible that this is some modern improvement on his original design. However it happened the carts keep getting bigger. When I bring my groceries to the check out counter I sometimes use the self check out. I don’t like the self checkout because the computer keeps telling me I put things in the bagging area when I didn’t. When I get a real person they will often ask this profound question. “Did you find ev...
Read more

Get The Rebound

Image
If you've ever played or watched basketball you know that rebounding is a huge part of the game. If you're unfamiliar with the sport rebounding is quite simply getting the ball when a shot is missed. You can't score without the ball which makes the play of great importance. It's not unusual for a team with a higher shooting percentage to lose a basketball game because they were out rebounded. On the court what you do when you miss can be even more important than making shots. It's true in life as well. Everyone misses shots, but that doesn't mean you've lost the game. Get the rebound. "For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again." Proverbs 24:16. People won't always give you the chance to rise again. For some your shortcoming is how they'll label you forever. Get the rebound anyway.  It was the historian Froude who wrote, "The worth of a man must be measured by his life, not by his failure under a singular a...
Read more