Rant #2,033: My Dad

Today is my father's 86th birthday.

My father continues to be the male bedrock of our small family.

Sure, he has aged in years, but he has not changed much at all over those years.

He is very opinionated, highly competitive, and still as strong as an ox.

My father retired last year after literally a life of work, including years as a butcher and then as a New York City licensed medallion cab driver.

He also served in the Marines during the Korean War. No, he never went over there--he supposedly had two sets of papers, one sending him to Korea and the other keeping him just where he was--but I often joke that due to my contest win of last year, finally someone in our family was sent to Korea.

He is the guy I looked up to at the start of my life. I thought he was so tall, me being a little shrimp and he being 5 feet, 11 inches.

But then I started to grow taller, he seemed to shrink, but only in stature.

In importance to me, in his influence on me, well, he only got stronger.

When I had my ups and my downs, he was always there, through thick and thin.

And even at 86 years of age, he (and my mother, for that matter) still have plenty of things to do to keep them busy.

My dad loves his children, adores being around his grandchildren, and maybe one day, he will bask in the glow of his great grandchildren (mind you, nothing is imminent in this regard).

So I celebrate my father today; we should all be so full of life when we get to his age.

Sure, his hearing isn't as good as it once was, and no, he could not work the grueling schedule that he did when he was younger, but like I said, he continues to be strong, full of life, and someone I will always look up to, even if he has shrunk a couple of inches in stature.

He is my hero; I could not have picked a better father if I had a choice in the matter.

No, we don't see eye to eye on everything, but that is all part of the fun of being the son of such an astute person, who can still argue his way out of a paper bag if he needs to.

On his birthday, I can't think of a better tribute than to print the lyrics of a song that was a hit way back when, but is seldom heard today.

It is "My Dad," composed by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and sung by actor/singer Paul Petersen, then one of the stars of "The Donna Reed Show."

I always liked this song, but I don't think I understood it fully until I became older and was a dad myself.

I have not been given permission to print these lyrics, I do not own them or have any rights to them. I print the lyrics because they say to perfection what I feel about my dad, on his birthday today or any day of the year.

"He isn't much in the eyes of the world
He'll never make history
No, he isn't much in the eyes of the world
But he is the world to me

My dad, now here is a man
To me he is everything strong
No, he can't do wrong, my dad

My dad, now he understands
When I bring him troubles to share
Oh, he's always there, my dad

When I was small I felt ten feet tall
When I walked by his side
And everyone would say "That's his son"
And my heart would burst with pride

My dad, oh I love him so
And I only hope that some day
My own son will say
"My dad, now here is a man"

I would suggest that you view the video of the song to get the full effect of what its words are trying to say. You can see Petersen sing the song on the show at this address: https://youtu.be/N-vYuV3OmhE

Again, a very happy birthday to my dad, and many, many more.