He Taught Me How To Be The Man I Am Today

I have been blessed to have - and still have - the dad that God knew I needed in my life. Though a man of very few words, when he did speak I listened. 

There are many things that Lloyd Randolph taught me about being a man, a father and a husband that were not in the form of formal talks or lessons, but in the daily living I got to do with my dad. There were countless lessons learned as I struggled to keep pace with his footsteps around his shop where he labored in his vocation as a mechanic; then there were the lessons learned working around the house and on our land; other lessons I learned on the 15 mile drive home each night from baseball practice just the two of us in the car talking about "things." These times were probably some of the most valuable and priceless times of my life.
 
Looking back now, I am awed at his love for me after he gave all he had in the South Texas heat working on some motor, muffler or transmission for 10 hours, then he’d come sit on the hood of his car and watch me take ground ball after ground ball after ground ball sitting on the hood of his ’65 Plymouth eating his dinner that mom would bring for him. He never once complained about other “stuff” that needed to get done at home. He was PRESENT! 

But, some of the best lessons I learned were taught with no words - simple actions. My dad was always one of the calmest, giving and sacrificial men I ever knew. As I look back on the 18 years of my life spent at home, my dad lived his life with four things driving him daily – his love for my mom, my brothers and sister. 

In my eyes he was a larger-than-life man that could kill me with the flick of his finger or could protect me from all the hurt that could come my way as a child. His love for my mom was – and still is - self-less and the picture of an Ephesians 5:25 husband. I believe his greatest gift to me was his wit and humor that can still bring a smile to my face when I get to spend time with him. He always had a way of seeing the funny side of any situation and it usually ended up in the line of a song. "Chicken Ain’t Nothin’ But a Bird"; "That Fat Gal of Mine" and other funny songs were never in short supply when dad had a guitar in his hand. 

As age has brought more wrinkles, less hair and a little slower gate to his walk, he still loves unselfishly and gives all he has for his wife and kids. He is still the man that makes me want to be a better man each day. He has taught me more about life than I could ever begin to chronicle and he has done it with a loving heart, a million-dollar smile and when needed, a tough hand, belt, tree switch, yardstick, shoe, stern look, booming voice that could shake the house or a stare that could burn a hole through a concrete wall. But through it all, he has taught me how to be “The Man I Am Today.” 

Happy Father’s Day Dad. 

In honor of my dad, you can download the song “The Man I Am Today” free this weekend through Monday by clicking the link here www.johnrandolphmusic.com. You’ll find it at the top of my website.

Please feel free to share this with any friend or family member in your life. Share it with your dad; share it on your wall and let's say thanks to all the dad's that have given so much of their lives to make sure that we had all we needed.

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