WHY NOT SEE THE GOOD POINTS?

I had a day of thinking today. Now don't get me wrong it isn't that I don't think often, it is more like I don't think clearly, or at least the way my mother taught me or the sunday school class taught me.

I had my father on my mind this morning. You know he was a hard man. He drank, was a bar-room fighter, a womanizer of sorts even, but so often the good points were overlooked, and there were many.

Dad never swore. No, I really mean that. He worked as a mechanic and owned a auto repair shop. No matter what the situation he never swore and you know what? That was commendable.

Now he didn't like shirkers! He used to tell me when I was growing up, "Son, give 110% every time they ask for 100% and you'll always have a job." Well, I have done that all of my life. I got awful tired a time or two, but I was never without work, even when a lot of other folks were.
Now, you have to admit, his instruction to me was commendable.

Dad worked hard and long. It all started early in his life when his father was accidentally killed in a shop accident. Suddenly this young man had to help support two sisters and six brothers. Even with the help of his next in line brother, Cecil T, it was a tough row considering he had to leave high school. He got a GED for high school and went on to a college for book keeping on his own. A hunger for learning was always there. Now that was commendable.

Before he ran his own repair shop he worked for a larger auto distributorship. It was during those times during World War II and shortly after that he really learned his trade. But you know, along with learning the trade he donated time to others. He was a leader of scouting in the Sea Scouts. He helped young men shape their future.

Even after opening his own garage he decided he could continue to help others by teaching. At that time there was a reasonably new place in what was then the outskirts of Omaha called Father Flanigan's Boy's Home. Now dad wasn't a catholic member but they needed someone to instruct, one night a week in auto repair, specifically radiators and automatic transmissions. Due to his responsibility who knows how many mechanics are out there today, just because he was there to teach and help a kid without anyone to care for them. Now, that was commendable, don't you agree?

My earliest memories of my father were of his neat attire, shined shoes and handsome face. He taught me the value of looking nice, speaking well, and caring about others and for that I can honestly tell you, he really was a champion in my life.

Isn't it a shame we tend to remember only the worst about our family and friends? Maybe we need to concentrate more on the good points and the affect they had on others during their lifetime.