Oh Father...

My father is my role model.  There.  I said it.  

Today at work an employee asked if they could interview me.  They are in our company's leadership training program and one of their homework assignments was to interview a manager other than their own and she picked me.  I was somewhat honored, even though I was probably just the only other manager that was available at the time.  

Either way.  One of the questions was something like "Who has been your biggest coach?" and before I could even take the time to ponder the thought itself I said, "My Dad".  I was confident in my answer and after I thought about it (honestly, after saying it aloud, I had second thoughts) I realized that it was true.  My biggest coach has actually been my father.  He has taught me a great many things despite my valiant efforts to not pay him any attention.  

He is also my friend.  A confidant.  I think about him a lot.  I think about what he would do if he were in my situations.  I think about how he would react to the people around me.  I think about my father almost all of the time, and I really wind up missing him a whole lot.  He is my buddy.  After the fear of being just like him passed, somewhere amidst my early twenties, we began to turn into friends.  When I call him on the phone it is not (ALWAYS) to ask him for certain "dad" things.  Most of the time it is just to shoot the shit.  A lot of times it is because I know that he will have the same views on the things that I am currently struggling with in my life and I feel the need to hear his opinion because it helps me feel more confident about my own.  He values trust and honesty.  He has done a great job at showing me what real men are made of and he did it without the likes of G.I. Joe or a pigskin covered ball.

Now when he calls me, it is not to ask why I am late for curfew, but just to say "Hey buddy, I miss you".  These messages are quite comforting and even though I don't return his (or my mom's) phone calls as quickly or in as timely of a fashion as I might should, I appreciate these little messages every time.  They put a smile on my face when I know that they think of me.

I am just like my father.  It's scary, but its true.