Happy Father's Day to my dad or "Pops," (as all the grandkids like to call him)! This is a blogpost that is incredibly easy for me to write because I was very fortunate to grow up with an amazing dad! Who I am today is due in huge part to how my dad (along with my mom) raised me and the lessons he taught me along the way.
Lesson #1 I learned from my dad was to love and cherish family. Other people will come and go in and out of your life, but your family will always be there and if you can't treat your family well then you've failed the other people in your life as well. I always knew that my dad loved us, he showed it in both action and deed. To paraphrase Maya Angelou,"people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." My dad always made me feel loved and cherished and I know the same goes for the rest of family.
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My dad with me and my older sister, Nisha, at my 16th Birthday Party!
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Lesson # 2 Treasure the small things in life. When I was a little girl, no more than 2 years old, my dad used to take me outside in the morning before the sun was up, wrapped up in a blanket to hear the birds sing. The love of nature and of the small things, such as the way a bird sings as it is ushering in the sunrise was instilled in me from such a young age because of my dad. My dad has never been too busy to stop and pause and admire the little things that make life special and I am so grateful he taught me to do the same because it is sometimes the small things in life that are the most special of all.
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| My dad playing on the beach with my sister Nisha. |
Lesson # 3 If you have a dream be willing to work hard and give it everything you've got. I grew up watching my dad build a landscaping company from the ground up. His landscaping company, Gardens For Living, is now one of the premier landscaping companies in Western North Carolina and it is because of my dad's hard work ethic that it has gotten to this place. I never saw my dad complaining when he had to sacrifice a Saturday or a Sunday to go water some plants he had just planted or when he had to get up Monday through Friday at 5am to be able to accomplish all he needed to that day. Seeing my dad work hard pursuing something he was passionate about plays a huge role in why I chose to be a photographer. I knew that being a photographer and pursuing a living in a creative artistic profession wouldn't be easy, but I knew that if I could work hard (like my dad) and never give up on my dreams I would be able to make it.
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| One of my dad's beautiful landscapes. |
Lesson # 4 You are never too busy to spend time with God! I was raised in church and I thank my parents for getting up every Sunday for years and getting me and my 3 other siblings to church on time! Being raised in church my entire life helped me to develop a close relationship with God when I was a little girl and gave me a solid moral upbringing to stand on when I grew up and times got hard. We used to joke growing up that my dad never missed church and he wouldn't let any of us miss church unless we were throwing up sick lol! Now that I look back on that though I am thankful to him for setting the example that one day a week you can sacrifice what you may feel like doing and give that time to God because he is worthy of it.
Lesson # 5 If you love someone don't be afraid to show it. I learned how to show love by watching how my dad showed love to my mom or to me and my siblings! This may seem like such a simple thing, but knowing how to show someone you love and appreciate them is such a valuable thing to know. My mom is a major bargain shopper and was always very frugal with the household budget, but one of the things she has always loved is jewelry! Nearly every Christmas growing up I would watch my dad surprise my mom with a new piece to add to her jewelry collection! Giving her those gifts was surely a sacrifice at times, but dad saw the joy it brought to my mom and how it made her feel loved and he put the time into picking out those pieces just for her. Another way my dad shows love is by loving and kissing and playing with his grandkids! Although he is very busy running his company, he is never too busy to get down on the floor with them and build castles with the blocks or play superheroes with my nephew, Beckett.
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| My dad reading to my niece, Ella. |
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| My dad coloring in a princess coloring book because my niece, Ella, wanted him too :). |
I have learned so much through watching my dad the past 23 years and I know that I will learn so much more from him as I grow older! Thank you dad for always loving me and setting such a great example!!
