LETTERS HOME… 1

Pa,

The things i remember… playing frisbee golf around the college, “B-17 bomber“, playing jeopardy and trivial pursuit–and ya’ll letting me play even though i was still a pup–, that baseball game where you had to pick out the players with the colored sheets–that was one of my favorite games–, the nfl game where you had to use the vcr to see what play you got was pretty good too.  I remember that time you had your leg in a cast for weeks after you tried to stretch out a gapper into 3 bags.  Little league baseball and basketball.  we were good.  I remember how your blue car could be heard a few minutes before it would actually get home. haha.  Magic 96.1 and the Kingsmen and the Oak Ridge Boys while driving down to Gaffney. backyard wiffle ball and running routes with you and josh out near mr. washburn’s house.

I just wanted to say thank you for all the things that I’ve learned from you over the past few decades.  Thanks for showing me that it’s ok to be smart.  and to strive to be smart.  Thanks for showing me that you can’t take yourself too seriously.  Thanks for being a servant.

My good buddy Tom thinks that some of the things we do during this life will somehow be used by the Father to help construct the renewed, redeemed heaven and earth.  If that’s the case then I can think of a few things that would make solid foundations.  You’ll never know how much it meant and means to me that you would decline a promotion to be chief, because you’d rather still work the 3rd shift so that you could come to my baseball practices.  Not so that you could rant and rave or fill my head with delusions like so many fathers, but just so that you could be there.  It’s also always impressed me how positive of a reaction you get from the GW students.  black, white, male, female, athletes, nerds, it never matters.  There’s ol’ Larry they might say.  And that “ol’ Larry” carries with it a ton of meaning.  A ton of respect.

You have rarely missed work or complained about work.  Through the good times and the not as good, you have always loved mama and us.  You don’t covet money and you don’t mind spending it on other people.  And now… you get to influence my kids, too.  I’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way.  Almost squandered my name, my opportunities, my upbringing.  But your love and devotion has never wavered.  I am a child of the King, and I owe a great deal of what I have learned about what that really means from your example and your study.  That’s one aspect of the great command to “remember who you are.”  Another identity that I am so grateful to have is that of your boy.

I love you Pa,

Dan’l