Today Is About My Dad
Today is about my dad. Since I was 3, he’s been working at the same company. I have maybe one or two memories of him before that; a young man (younger than me now!) with crazy, shaggy hair, smiling and laughing. But since then he’s been a company man, putting food on our table, a bacon-bringer extraordinaire.
Over the years, the dress code has shifted from suit-and-tie to shirt-and-tie. He’s had a lot of different positions, and even got a chance to work in Asia for a few years. I know that at times he’s enjoyed his job and other times really hasn’t. But for 27 years, good or bad, he did it, and did it well.
Today is about my dad, because today is his last day of work; he’s retiring. I called him for the last time at his office and wished him well. I don’t know what he’s going to to do, and I’m not sure he knows, but he’s earned a while to think about it. As always there’s grass to be cut, action movies to be watched. Those won’t go away. But he’ll get bored eventually, despite the magical powers of yard work, and will find something to do, something that’s truly satisfying to him. I can’t wait to see what that is.
Congratulations, dad.
February 23rd, 2006 at 8:12 pm
Dad speaking. Thanks for the tribute, son. I haven’t really thought of myself as a company man, but I surely must be after 27 1/2 years with the same company. Those crazy, shaggy-headed days are long gone, replaced by thinning gray hair, but my mustache has remained in place after all these years — a mild sign of rebellion in a strait-laced multinational firm. I’m looking forward to the next phase, which is pretty much an open book at this point. There will certainly be a place for B movies and household chores, but I’m holding out for something interesting and engaging. Thanks for being a good son.