World's Greatest Parents!

Mom and Dad

 

As I sit here thinking about my life, and the individuals who influenced me the most, only two people come to mind....my parents!  I can't honestly say one without the other because they both played an equal part in raising me and my siblings.  I thank God everyday for giving me the kind of parents that provided me the three most important things I needed to succeed in life and that is love, support and encouragement. 

First of all and foremost, they gave us love.  You see, my parents started out as sharecroppers, which was back then working on a farm for a share of the crops.  In the past, sharecropping paid little to nothing, but they still somehow managed to provide for us children.  Later my father worked on a farm that paid him a decent wage and  my mother worked as a housekeeper.  I can remember that even though my mother worked she was always at home by the time we got there from school.  She was there to make sure we did our chores, homework, and anything else that needed to be done.  They both worked hard to care of us, which wasn't easy with eight children; five girls and three boys.  I'm not trying to paint a picture of the perfect family, with perfect children because like all families we had our share of bad times too.  Somehow, they always managed to give us children the basic things we needed.  We had three meals a day, clothes to wear, a roof over our heads, discipline when we needed it, and of course their love.  Not having much money, they tried to give us mostly what we needed and some of what we wanted.  I think this taught us not to focus so much on the material things we didn't have, but to be more appreciative of what we did have, which was the love of our family.  I regret not following this example; I instead tried to give my children everything they asked for.  I thought like so many other parents of my generation that I wanted my children to have more of the things I didn't have when I was growing up.  Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's wrong to want more for your children.  I just think that they will appreciate it more when they have to work for it.  

When it comes to the support and encouragement my parents gave us, all I can say is that whenever I or one of my siblings called them, they were there to offer whatever support and encouragement we needed.  Whether it was helping us out financially or spiritually, it didn't matter.  Any way they could help, they did.  Since my father passed away, my mother is still give us her love, support and encouragement.  Not so much financially now since we all are grown, but we still come to her for advice.  

Looking back on my childhood now, I realize those were some of the happiest times of my life.  My parents not only gave us the love, support, and encouragement that we needed, but they also taught us the important of going to church; to put God first in everything we do and to follow the Golden Rule which is "To do unto others as you would have them to do unto you."  The values my parents taught me when I was growing up are the same values I've tried to instill in my children, so that they can live happy, healthy and successful lives. 

1929 - 1999