alexis in the city

my dad is awesomesauce

The great thing about blogging is you can write sentimental posts for people in lieu of gifts ~ j/k, I took my dad out to dinner as his father’s day gift last time we visited. On mother’s day, I posted a tribute I’d written for my mom several years back so for father’s day, I wanted to resurrect this post I wrote last year. It’s a list of reasons why I’m grateful for both my parents, but I still found it applicable as a tribute to my dad!

1. they taught me i could be anything, do anything, have anything i wanted. i don’t remember anything ever being too crazy, too ambitious too … whatever.  i always had (and still have) a strongly-held belief that i could accomplish what i set my mind to, thanks to the encouragement of my parents.

and they went beyond just telling me i could do something. when i played sports, i don’t think my mom ever missed a game (and my dad was always there if he was in town). when i was a cheerleader my mom learned the cheers. whether i was competing in piano guilds or pageants, they were driving me, practicing with me, giving me the tools i needed so i COULD actually accomplish anything. (and, looking back, i accomplished a lot for a kid!) this type of support was especially impressive considering my dad was gone probably an average of 25-40% of my childhood … yet i never felt like he wasn’t there for the things that mattered.

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The Antiquated Modern

Not long ago, we were having dinner with friends (yes, you really should check out their blog because they are gourmet cooks and make ridiculous food), reminiscing/commiserating about some of our  experiences growing up in the church. We were asking each other if - in light of poking fun at some of the traditions of our background - we would change anything about the religious aspects of our childhood. I responded that I would’ve changed what was talked about. I know there are issues on which my parents don’t agree with the general evangelical consensus. But what’s more than that - I know that whether they agree or disagree they have reasons for their beliefs.

I didn’t come away from my upbringing with a strong sense of the research, wrestling, and decisions behind beliefs espoused in my churches, schools and at home. There are exceptions, but in general I came away with a series of strong implications of things I should believe. Don’t get me wrong - I was encouraged to question things and my parents have been very supportive and open to discussing my faith journey but it’s something I’ve initiated as an adult.

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