Father, thy name is amazing…

I, we, my sister and brother have the most amazing Dad. Everyday I think that if I am allowed to be on this earth as long as he has that I will be able to live my life as well as he has. He gives us all such a good example to follow. As I go over in my mind the many things I am struggling with, and all the things I know my kids struggle with I am constantly struck by the hardships he has overcome. It gives me pause and causes me to think that if he could get through some the trials he has been asked to bear, my problems don't seem so bad anymore. No one in our immediate family has elected to go to war and serve their country at the tender age of 17 (or any other age so far). I know none of us can fully appreciate the kind of service and hardship that is (and was). So we can preserve and enjoy our freedom. That same freedom that allows to complain about so much here. He and so many like him did not have the youth experiences our kids today have. Life got pretty serious pretty fast for so many of them. That's probably why it is so hard for him to understand why kids today have such a hard time finding their way sometimes. He has made a lifetime of serving others. I find myself again wishing it were somehow possible to know our parents when they were young. I can only imagine what he was like those years that he was piloting jets through the skies, truly doing things we never dreamed of. The father I know has always been a father. He has been the man doing whatever it took to support us, even if it meant being away on fire bases all over the country flying B-17's over a burning forest to give us the things we needed.  We always benefitted from his desire to be a good provider. He is a strong, patient, kind, loving protector. I never got to know the young father walking the floor with a crying baby at night. I only benefitted from his kindness and care. The young man gifted with what it took to be an exceptional pilot - so much so that he was asked to be part of the original Air Force demonstration team now known as the Thunderbirds. The pics are of the original planes they flew, he flew the slot position, (the one in back under and behind everyone). The other one is almost all of us at the last Thunderbird Reunion, Nellis Air Force Base - Home of the Thunderbirds. The current team members took us through the hanger and snapped this shot of us. Everywhere we went at the airshow there was nothing but respect for the alumni. The current team knows each man that flew and when. There is a real feeling of belonging to a piece of history in their organization.  It was and has been through the years a great experience to part of. There is so much I wish I knew about this amazing man. I hope he is writing the record of his life so we can know him for generations to come. I have a strong testimony of family and what it takes to keep one together. I acquired that testimony from watching my parents with us. Service, unconditional love, putting yourself second (or third, or fourth), so many things that are never convenient but that have to be done, forgiving others their shortcomings - so they will forgive yours, sacrifice on every level, patience on every level, endurance beyond imagining. Doing your absolute best in all you undertake. I see all this in my Dad. I see a lifetime of learning, growing, accepting what can't be changed and enduring what must be endured. Families are eternal, and I am thankful for that. I love you Dad. I thank you for the awesome example you are to all of us.