happy father's day

My pop will talk sometimes about regrets and wishing he could have done some things differently with regards to my brothers and I.

The truth is he taught me plenty. I don't think he sat down and thought about all the stuff he wanted me to learn. But I managed to retain quite a bit. He taught me to respect nature. The importance of a good hat. To be loyal to my brothers. How to keep score in a ball game. How to take a picture. To give people the benefit of the doubt. And the importance of John, Paul, George and Ringo. All of these things are a primer for my life.

I imagine that most of these things aren't passed down with intention—as it might seem how one is supposed to handle it when one sets out to be a father. It just happens and you take these things in and one day you realize what you know and who you learned it from.

I bought this book a while ago and gave copies to my brothers. I don't agree with everything in it, but I do like what it stands for. Now that I actually have a son on the way, I've started to take some of these rules to heart. Here are a few of my favorites from the collection:

Don’t squash bugs.

Break in your own jeans.

At the ballpark, never start the wave. But don’t let it die.

A handshake beats an autograph.

If you aren’t hungry enough to eat an apple, you aren’t hungry.

Take the stairs.

Men should not wear sandals. Ever.

The key to good photography is not timing. It’s editing.

You are what you do, not what you say.

When in the woods, be quiet.

Don’t spend too much money on a haircut. They don’t last.

Call your Mom on your birthday, it's a special day for her, too.



Happy Father's Day, pop.