User:Stuart/Dad

My Dad

My Dad was a teacher.
He taught me to accept people as they are and not as I think they should be.
He taught me to make plans but always be prepared for them to be thrown away at the first instance.
He tried, a few times, to teach me ship stability, but that never took.
He taught me the contentment you could achieve by sitting on the top of a mountain and enjoying being there.
And the satisfaction you could achieve with a nice pint after the walk.

My Dad was a student.
He wanted to learn about everyone he met.
He'd greet a waiter in a cafe with the same enthusiasm that he'd greet an old friend, and be genuinely interested to learn about them and their life in the same way.
He was learning to speak Spanish, to play the accordion, forever learning new skills on the computer.
He was always trying to improve, never just accepting that he was done and there was no point in changing any more.

My Dad was a counsellor.
He would listen, without judgement or impatience, to anyone who needed to talk.
He would be the rock you could rely on when you were unsure of the ground you were standing on.

My Dad was all of these things and more and I miss him.

I'm going to finish with a short excerpt from his favourite book - 'The Prophet' by Kahlil Gibran.

Say not "I have found the truth", but rather "I have found a truth".
Say not "I have found the path of the soul."
Say, rather, "I have met the soul walking on my path."
For the soul walks on all paths.

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