Some days my briefcase-backpack-mobile_office is heavier than it is on other days. In it are the contents of not just my professional labor, but the weight of my family commitments and responsibilities, as the luggage also holds the connection to these as well. Those who know me know this item is rarely gone from my side. It’s a bit of a joke really, but there you are.

Still, no matter the bleariness of my eyes or the ache that may come, I still strap the thing to my back, clear my head, and press on into another day.

I can imagine what’s going through your head at the moment… but wait a moment, the narrative does get better!

This isn’t a post of sadness, dismay, or pitifulness.

It’s a post of thankfulness.

I’m thankful to my parents.

Without them I could not appreciate the beauty and hope within the layers upon layers of items inside this weight I carry – a weight that has strengthened me by its presence.

My parents have taught me patience by being patient with my own youthful decisions and childish reactions to their household rules.

Without this I could not have known how to be patient with my own children (and sometimes employees/wo-workers, haha)

My parents have taught me compassion by being compassionate to others who might have been given up upon by others.

Without this I would not have known how to show this to my own children by forgiving their youthful acts of selfishness and showing uncompromising love for them – even though they know i still would not approve the actions they choose.

Also i would now know how to feel for others’ plight, and to teach others how to fish instead of just throwing money their way in the hopes of appeasing my guilty conscience.

My parents have taught me steadfastness by being faithful to their commitments day over day, year over year.

Without this I would not have known the pleasure in rising to plateaus in my profession because of my employers’ trust and respect in my word ad deed.

Also I would never have known how to show my children how to be trustworthy when promises made are kept on a consistent basis, and not on a whim when the time and opportunity suits me.

My parents have taught me honor by being honorable to themselves as man and wife.

Without this I would not have known what it is to be in a family that respects itself – even when the role of husband and wife is not always easy to maintain.

This is one of the shining hopes that lie before me for my children to follow.

My parents have taught me the love of God by being the types of people who are faithful to the God in which we trust.

I know this is a broad statement, but our family’s relationship with God encompasses all the above, and more.

Without this most important lesson I would never have known how to be the person I strive to be every day – and the person I pray my children yearn for and attain as they grow into the people they are learning to be.

This is why, on days when that backpack seems a little heavier than others, I stop and thank my parents.

Without them I would not know the value in what it is I carry.

Time travel is indeed possible, thanks to high school English class. Sounds like an odd statement but it happened just the other day.

My daughter and i were sitting across from each other and she was filling out a job application. I tossed out a suggestion related to filling out the form, and wondered in the back of my head where the idea had come from – as the suggestion wasn’t something i normally do or would have thought to do.

Then it hit me, and BAM!  I was sitting across from my 10th-grade English class study partner during lunch.

—

“This is stupid”, I found myself saying, “I’ll never use this idea.  Who thought this” [I waved my hand across a notebook paper covered with 10th grade-ish scribbles] “…would be helpful?”

—

And then again, BAM! I was back, sitting across from my teenage daughter, who was busily running full speed with this idea I had only just moments ago rejected with scorn.

Well, it seemed like just moments ago.  Time travel is funny that way.

I was having a chat with my mom yesterday and was reminded that:

1) You don’t HAVE to date the lonely, downtrodden and oppressed to help turn him or her a winner.

Being poor, from a broken home, or recovering from a lifetime of bad decisions doesn’t automatically mean that he (or she) will perform some magical movie-like life turnaround just because you’ve come into his (or her) life.

If you’re young and relatively inexperienced in life decisions, and especially if you don’t have the best of family ties, you’re likely to be ‘dragged down’ instead of ‘bringing anyone up from their worst’.

You’ve got enough to deal with learning the ropes yourself – getting involved with a “bad boy” (or girl) is infinitely more painful than the tv shows and movies let on.  Here’s a secret why – the folks in the tv set have many more, and far better writers than you do IRL 🙂

2) Not every jem is found in the rough…

It’s actually wiser to look for “the one” in a higher class of person than you’d normally feel comfortable in. This encourages you to aim for higher standards.

Here’s a secret – class does not equal money.

‘Class’ is deeper than that.  One thing to look for is how respectful the prospective mate treats his or her family, those he or she doesn’t need to impress, and those who might be influenced by that person’s decisions.

That’s not all that makes a person ‘classy’, but that’s the fastest way to weed out the junk from the rest.

3) And contrary to most modern movies,

sometimes a nice young man (or woman) is not some freaky psycho person hiding beneath a calm exterior, but is ACTUALLY just a nice person.

No, this guy isn’t digging a shallow grave, burying a pipe bomb, or hiding evidence of a drug smuggling run.  He’s just making his neighborhood look a little nicer by tending to his yard.