A Series Of Thanks, Part 3

Last night I got to do something I haven't got to do in some time now. I got the privilege of going to church with my mom as just her son - not her pastor son. I got to sit through church with her at her new church and just be me. It reminded me so much of my childhood. It reminded me how thankful I am for the parents God gave me.
I start with my mom - the lady who always worried too much in my eyes, but who can never be accused of not being concerned enough. I never understood it as I was growing up, all I saw was worry and fear, but I now know that this was just her way of caring for me - of wanting to keep me safe, and keep me on the right path. She was involved in every aspect of my life - I could always count on her to be there at everything I did. Every time I got hurt, she was the first on the scene. As I got older there were times when I just needed someone to be patient with me, and mom was always that. Her and dad always made me go to church - the always held me to standards of right - they always expected me to act like I had been raised to act. She was, and is, a constant in my life - something or someone I never question - because her faithfulness has been I expect it to always be. Where would I be without my mom? Where would our family have ended up without her - often the voice of reason whether we wanted to listen or not. She was not perfect, but she was and is the perfect mother for me.
And then there is my dad - the hero of my life. Regrettably it was not until his homegoing that I realized how deep his influence was on me. Dad was a hard man, but without question a good man. All of him was in all that he did. Nothing could keep him from doing what he thought to be right - not illness, not social security, not anything. He was the hardest worker I have ever seen. He was faithful to lead his family, faithful to discipline his children, faithful to do whatever it took to be the man God had called him to be. He, like my mother, was by no means perfect - he was just the perfect father for me. Often they tease me for being like him in many ways - what they do not know is that I take it as a compliment. To be half the man that he was would be, in my eyes, quite an achievement. I miss him deeply, but I am forever grateful that he was the man that he was to us. Today I am thankful for the incredible gift of my parents - God could have placed me in any home He wanted - I am thankful He chose this one. I am thankful that even though we never had much we always had what we needed. We had parents who never failed to love us, never failed to invest in us, never failed to hold us to standards. I am thankful that my mom worried. I am thankful that my dad was hard - because this is who they were - and I wouldn't change it for the world. Father, I thank you that you placed me in such a home - I am thankful that you crafted these two human beings to be the perfect people to raise my sister and I. Father I thank you that I knew the blessing of a home that stayed together - I thank you that I knew the blessing of a home that pursued godliness. Father, I thank you for my incredible mother, I thank you for such an awesome father.
(Thanksgiving Day 09)