My Father's Example

 I can say without a doubt that I do have the greatest father! He is such a great support and example to me!

When I was young, my father was a high school math teacher. As I grew up, working with math was just something to learn like riding bikes, reading, cooking/baking. It was never something treated as difficult or hard. My father never treated math as something you are either good at or bad at. It was just another thing to learn. As such, I always knew that I could learn math, and I have come to LOVE teaching math to others, teaching them that they too can learn math with patience and practice. I have a career I enjoy thanks in part to my father's example.

My father grew (and still grows) a garden. He taught me so much about growing things, especially about trying something. I remember the year he grew peanuts. It was a great example of growing something not necessarily for the yield but for the fun of growing it!  This example has helped me to discover the joy in growing sweet potatoes and garlic - two of my favorite crops! I thought I may as well try it just to see what happened, and with my success, I now grow them every year.

My father also has a special place in his garden for roses. After seeing the beauty these flowers brought to his garden, I learned to care for them too. I now have several rose bushes that thrive each year.

latest project - this new garden area

My father also gave me an example of hard work and not being afraid of DYI projects. I watched as my dad laid tile among many other projects. This gave me the courage to teach myself home improvement skills like laying tile, dry walling,  installing new light fixtures, and so much more. As a single mom, I could not afford to hire anyone to do these things for me - so I just learned to do them myself. Projects like these are extremely satisfying to me even now when I could technically hire someone to do them for me.

I am so grateful for the wonderful examples set by my father! But his best and most cherished example comes from witnessing his love for his family and his love for our Father in Heaven! My father truly is a great man because of this love!!!

I am so blessed!