My dad has always been my knight in shining armor. He has always been the person that I could go to for anything. I can’t count the number of nights he stayed up listening to me complain about dumb boys or silly girl drama. He always knows exactly what I need; advice, a laugh, dinner out, or just silence. He has taught me so much about being the best person I can be. I thought that I knew and understood him; I thought that I respected him as much as I possibly could. I was wrong. This summer while I was working we listened to the country station everyday, all day. One day Brad Paisley’s song “He didn’t have to be” came on, and as cheesy as it sounds, I learned more about my dad that day. This song talks about a man who loved Brad Paisley’s mother and became Brad’s father, even though he didn’t have to be. My dad was this type of man as well. He married my mom and became a father the same day. Growing up in an LDS family, with knowledge of the eternal family, I never gave much thought to this thought. Tyson is my brother, always has been and always will be. But he could have not been.
My dad had a choice to make; be cowardly, and run from my mom and brother, or be strong, and become a husband and father. He chose to be strong but that wasn’t what he was thinking. He wasn’t consciously thinking, “I will do this because this boy needs a father.” He was thinking that he loved them. Honestly, I don’t think my dad ever thought twice about becoming a father and husband at once. My favorite line in the song says, “And then all of a sudden...we went from something's missing, to a family.” This is the story of my family. Without any of us it wouldn’t be complete. We would be missing a part of our whole. This song means a lot to me because it brought into perspective the relationship between my dad and the rest of my family. He brings us all together. He took a big leap, that I’m sure wasn’t easy. But he did it with love and has never looked back. Not only was he the dad that “he didn’t have to be” in that sense. He has taken his role as a father to every extent possible. Never has he shied away from an opportunity to teach or a chance to show love. He is always thinking of ways to serve my siblings and me. There are a lot of men in the world today that aren’t even the dads they are supposed to be, let alone going the extra mile. I feel very fortunate to have a dad that goes the extra mile.
The whole message of this song is that Brad Paisley wants to be the type of father that his dad “didn’t have to be.” Although I will never be a father, I hope that I can be the type of person that my father is. A person who is always doing their best, looking to serve, and going the extra mile. This song opened my eyes even more to the amazing man that raised me even though “he didn’t have to be.”
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I liked this post because it used a song. I've never been one to listen to the lyrics of a song and to see that you incorporated a song that has this level of significance and this kind of message is really a unique thing to see. I also liked the description of the way your father goes the extra mile. I do not believe children, regardless of age, realize the amount of effort it takes to be a true father unless they've been there and its nice to see that recognized here.
ReplyDeleteThis is good, but there are a few things that I would change about it. First off, some of your sentence length is too short in some parts. You have sentences that could be combined, but they aren't. It would flow much better if you merged those sentences because right now it's kind of awkward (we both know you wouldn't talk that way in person). Some of your sentences are redundant; for example, you use 'extra mile' three times within five sentences. There are a few grammar mistakes too.
ReplyDeleteI admire that you wrote about your father. He sounds like a really great dad. Thanks for sharing!