by Kaitlyn Hamilton

Created on: December 09, 2008

My father can certainly give other men some pointers on how to be the best father and husband possible. My father has worked hard his entire life and he has always been an excellent provider for my mother and our entire family. He doesn't just provide financial security for his family, but he also takes wonderful care of my mother and loves us all very much. He's one of the most amazing men I know.

I'm now 34 years old and I'm still a "Daddy's girl". It's just that I've seen so many of my friends deal with the problems of their fathers. I've seen everything from physical abuse and verbal abuse to alcoholism and complete irresponsibility. These things are not even in my father's vocabulary. I know how fortunate I am and I'm so thankful for both of my parents.

My father got up every weekday for years and went to a job that wasn't too pleasant so he could put food on our table and maintain a roof over our heads. On weekends, he would often take my brothers hunting or fishing and sometimes he would take the entire family camping in the mountains. We didn't have a lot of money for fine clothing or expensive sporting gear, but we managed and we always had fun.

Growing up, Dad also did almost all of the yardwork including mowing, raking, gardening, and landscaping. In the fall, he would go out and find wood for our wood-burning stove. After working all week during the day and dealing with his family of six at night, I'm certain that he was exhausted and would have rather done anything but chop wood, yet he never complained. If it needed to be done, he did it. He maintained our house perfectly both inside and out. He also taught us how to do the same.

My parents never argued in front of us. I know that they must have disagreed over finances and other things, but we never knew about it. My parents have always been respectful of one another and they are as much in love today as they were nearly fifty years ago.

My father always encouraged us to be our very best. To him, nothing was impossible. He never set unrealistic goals for us, but he has always had the attitude that we could do anything if we tried hard enough. Our entire lives he has only had words of encouragement. I never once recall hearing harsh words from Dad.

He also taught us good, family values and morals by setting the example. My father never once cheated on my mother and he made sure we knew how important it is that family comes first. Looking back at our childhood, I wonder sometimes if we ever really appreciated

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