Fathers' Day

Today is Fathers' Day here in America and here is OilMan out in the 110F (44C) weather barbecuing a pork shoulder. Daughter Dana and her family will be over later to join us.  I hope he won't be out there for long for even with the umbrella, it is hot enough to cook the pork shoulder without the barbecue! It is just like him to quietly get on with whatever has to be done regardless of the circumstances.

He is a caring and selfless father to his children and tirelessly works on projects that he thinks the grandchildren will enjoy. He never wants anything for himself and is happiest when he can be in the company of his family. He rarely loses his temper and it is a fact that the only time I can think of when he did, I laughed!

One of the boys was about 11 or 12 and OilMan was taking him to meet the bus for his first overnight Boy Scout camping experience, a canoe trip down the Russian River. We had packed his duffle bag with all the necessities on the list and off they went. Ten minutes they were back. I heard OilMan storming up the stairs and throwing things around in the attic. No sign of our son who had stubbornly refused to get out of the car with his duffle bag at the bus when he realized that all the other boys had backpacks.

Pretty soon OilMan reappeared with his ancient Boy Scout pack frame to which he had attached the rejected duffle bag with bungee cords! Throwing the whole assemblage into the car, he looked at the boy and said, "now get in!". He got in without a word. 

OilMan was a math and chemistry tutor, toiling over homework at the dining table in the evenings, often claiming to have a 'shortcut' to solving a problem, when all the kids wanted was to do it the way the teacher said. Arguments frequently ensued but I never heard him raise his voice.

There were times when I was at my wits' end with one or the other of the kids and OilMan would quietly say to me, why don't you just let me deal with them for awhile? The first time he suggested this, my was response was, but I'm the mother...I'm supposed to deal with it. But I soon learned the wisdom of his suggestion. Sometimes, when we see so much of ourselves in our children, it is difficult to be objective. Somehow OilMan never had that problem, and his suggestion probably saved us all a lot of angst.

So here's to you, OilMan, father, grandfather, husband and friend. You're the best!