2003-08-06 | 4:37 p.m.
one score and seven years ago...

i recently read an entry that someone wrote about their dad who doesn't do such a good job being a dad. when i was done reading it, i sat back, just sort of stared blankly at the words, and muttered a little, "wow." and it struck me how much i absolutely couldn't relate to any of it. i tried to think of some even minute way that either of my parents have wronged or neglected me, and i really couldn't... still can't.

anyways, tomorrow is their 27th anniversary, and i thought i would write a little entry in honor thereof. here is a (not by any means exhaustive) list of the reasons i'm glad they're my mommy and daddy.

thank you mom...

  • for staying at home for us and sacrificing a better financial standing and your career.
  • for teaching me how to read and write and all that sort of stuff.
  • for wearing old clothes so we could have more new ones.
  • for making dinner every night and always being stocked up on cookies. now that i have to feed myself, i can begin to appreciate what a task it must've been to feed eight people every day.
  • for calling me every week without fail when i'm far away.

thank you dad...

  • for spending so many nights laying on the grass teaching us constellations and showing us which planets are currently in the sky.
  • for always looking for opportunities to teach me new things or for us to learn together.
  • for taking us camping and telling mosquito stories while we fell asleep.
  • for letting me help you build and fix even when i was probably more of a hindrance than a help.
  • for not being able to hide it that you're proud of me.

thank you mom and dad...

  • for teaching me how to work
  • for never yelling at each other or fighting (at least not in front of us).
  • for having all six of us kids even though it meant money was always tight and is even still. i wouldn't want to trade any of my siblings for having had nicer clothes, newer cars, or a bigger house.
  • for nourishing our curiosity.
  • for knowing what truth is and teaching it to me.
  • for teaching me how to be a good person not just by telling me but by example.
  • for being supportive of what we do and respecting each of us kids for who we are.
  • for praying for me every night. i haven't heard you doing it, but i know you do.
  • for being in love and loving each other so much that it never even crossed my mind that you might not.
  • loving me unconditionally.