The world lost a great man yesterday,
Our country lost a fierce defender,
A community lost a dedicated leader,
And I lost my father.
My father was a product of the West Texas oil fields,
Of hard-working, hard-scrabble people,
Where a man’s word was as reliable as the Gold Standard,
And you were nothing if you didn’t have integrity.
He was proud of where he came from, but he wanted more for himself,
So, in 1958, he joined the Corps at Texas A&M,
He worked his way through college,
And, in 1961, was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into the United States Marine Corp.
Along the way, he married a hometown girl—his soulmate, his partner, his other half—
And, together, they raised three daughters.
(For this alone, my husband says, he should have earned a medal.)
I owe a lot to my father—a tough task master with exceedingly high standards.
He is the reason I am who I am today.
He was a man of good character.
He was tough, resilient, and hard-working.
He was honest, compassionate and considerate, he was respectful of others,
And he demanded the same from his children.
My mother taught me how to act like a lady,
But my father taught me to fight like a man.
He said to me once, “It’s a man’s world out there, honey, and it always will be.
If you want to get ahead, my advice to you is to join the Boys Club,
And if you’re going to join the Boys Club, you might as well be President
Because sh*t only rolls one way…(downhill).”
My father commanded respect from others and he had boundless respect FOR others.
Through his travels he learned that all men are basically the same,
That we all worship the same God,
And that all spirituality is holy.
He once told me that understanding the belief systems of others’
Helped him understand his own God even more.
I share this with you because, although you could not know this,
you—the members of TBH—served as a great source of
comfort for me through many a lonely night holding a difficult bedside vigil.
For this, I thank you.
There is no need to send up prayers, nor offer condolences.
You’ve already answered those prayers and extended condolence by your simple presence.
If you take anything away from this missive, I hope it is this—
That you glean inspiration from a man who came from very little,
Who pulled himself up by his bootstraps,
Who set a course of achievement and for a better way of life,
Who never made excuses,
And, through it all, who paid his own way through it.
Yes, the world lost a fine, fine man yesterday.
.
Our country lost a fierce defender,
A community lost a dedicated leader,
And I lost my father.
My father was a product of the West Texas oil fields,
Of hard-working, hard-scrabble people,
Where a man’s word was as reliable as the Gold Standard,
And you were nothing if you didn’t have integrity.
He was proud of where he came from, but he wanted more for himself,
So, in 1958, he joined the Corps at Texas A&M,
He worked his way through college,
And, in 1961, was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into the United States Marine Corp.
Along the way, he married a hometown girl—his soulmate, his partner, his other half—
And, together, they raised three daughters.
(For this alone, my husband says, he should have earned a medal.)
I owe a lot to my father—a tough task master with exceedingly high standards.
He is the reason I am who I am today.
He was a man of good character.
He was tough, resilient, and hard-working.
He was honest, compassionate and considerate, he was respectful of others,
And he demanded the same from his children.
My mother taught me how to act like a lady,
But my father taught me to fight like a man.
He said to me once, “It’s a man’s world out there, honey, and it always will be.
If you want to get ahead, my advice to you is to join the Boys Club,
And if you’re going to join the Boys Club, you might as well be President
Because sh*t only rolls one way…(downhill).”
My father commanded respect from others and he had boundless respect FOR others.
Through his travels he learned that all men are basically the same,
That we all worship the same God,
And that all spirituality is holy.
He once told me that understanding the belief systems of others’
Helped him understand his own God even more.
I share this with you because, although you could not know this,
you—the members of TBH—served as a great source of
comfort for me through many a lonely night holding a difficult bedside vigil.
For this, I thank you.
There is no need to send up prayers, nor offer condolences.
You’ve already answered those prayers and extended condolence by your simple presence.
If you take anything away from this missive, I hope it is this—
That you glean inspiration from a man who came from very little,
Who pulled himself up by his bootstraps,
Who set a course of achievement and for a better way of life,
Who never made excuses,
And, through it all, who paid his own way through it.
Yes, the world lost a fine, fine man yesterday.
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