Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Parents

49 days! That isn't the time between the end of college football's regular season and its championship game, though it is probably close (which is one of the things that ruins college football for me, but let me rant about that another day). That is the distance of time between my parents' anniversary and my sister's birthday, during which my entire family growing-up celebrated their birthdays. Christmas (and Thanksgiving) fell in that range also, so in my formative years, thirteen percent of the calendar year was filled with familial celebrations of these sorts of things.

In the midst of this period is my mother's birthday, which just so happens to be January 1. This was the celebration for which we stayed up late and set off fireworks. It was the one my father always touted as the most important, and it is the date, in my mind, that stands for all celebrations of birthdays.

While my parents were not perfect, it is hard for me to accept that they have flaws. This may be inherent within us as humans, but I have a natural acceptance that anything they taught me or showed to me, must be correct. Believing in Sovereignty the way I do, it is relatively easy for me to say they were the perfect parents for me. I feel so blessed to have had them as my parents.

Since the December 31/January 1 combo is culturally the most introspective and nostalgic dates on the calendar, I frequently find myself considering how blessed I am to have had such wonderful parents. Combining this with the fact that I am considering the celebration of family season on that date also, I spend a lot of time thinking about my parents. This is certainly as good of a time as any.

In my work, I have run into many people who are unquestionably losers. People who are in and out of prison, people who are set up so poorly for life that they have no marketable skills or ability to get a job, or I guess the base definition of people who have never won anything. Being completely incapable of surviving as an adult is so hard for me to associate with, because my parents have done so much to set me up for success.

Never mind the fact that despite all they taught me about managing a career, winning, or providing an income, they seemed to have placed them all in the proper priority. I can remember them telling me that the most important thing was character. Not only did they make sure I received a top-notch education, they assisted me in so many ways since then. As I look at my life, I notice they've helped me in every measurable way to be where I am.

I remember talking with Josh Boisselle during soccer games and his philosophy of "Anyone who thinks his father is an idiot is one generation off." So, if you have parents (that should be most of you) and can do basic things like read this blog post, take a moment to thank God for putting them in your life. You could probably take a moment to thank them for being good parents. If you know my parents, you could probably send them a note about the good things they've done.

1 comment:

  1. How sweet! I'm sure your parents will feel honored and be blessed by this.

    ReplyDelete