Feeling Lucky on Father’s Day

I Love Being a Father

I want to start by saying that I feel no greater joy in the world than the joy I receive from being a father. Then I remember how much I love being Stephani’s husband and how much I love God. So it goes God, Stephani, and those boys. It’s a tight race and those boys know it. 🙂 I realize just how much God loves me, because I cannot put into words how much I love my boys. I would walk through a wall for those guys without batting an eye.

I am the Father of Five Boys

If you know me, then you know I am the father of five boys.  As of this writing, they are 15, 13, 10, 6, and 4.  They are the gas in my engine, the apples in my eye (ouch), and the reason I do the things I do.  The boys are my past, present, and future.  They are where I’ve been and where I’m going. I am so proud of who they are today.  I can’t wait to see who they will be tomorrow.

Scattered Thoughts

Since I am on too short of a time constraint (I literally have to leave for my 4-year-old’s baseball game) and since I’m generally scattered anyway, I thought I would share all the things that come to mind for me today on Father’s Day.

1. I stand on the shoulders of giants. My grandfathers were such influential people in my life.  They taught me the value of hard work, how to tell a good joke, how to laugh, how to stay cool, how to hunt, how to fish, how to golf, the value of family, and they gave me my parents. I can never thank those two enough.  Their names are Carroll Leon Barrett and Hilton Ayers Woodbury.
2. The biggest giant in my life is my own dad, Jess Leroy Barrett.  He means the world to me and that will never change. He helped make me into the man I am today.  He taught me everything I know. My mom obviously played a big part in this story too, but this is Father’s Day. I know she will understand.  Dad is still with me.  Thank God.  I am lucky to still have him around.  He still has an opinion on everything.  He still has a fire that can inspire and intimidate. He still has my back. I can always count on my dad. He has told me that countless times and has always shown that to be true. Thanks Dad.
3. I love songs about dads.  There are so many good ones out there. Being a country music fan makes me think of a few.
   1. Daddy’s Hands – The Judds
   2. Father’s Love – George Strait
   3. The Dollar – Jamey Johnson
   4. Daddy Let Me Drive – Alan Jackson
4. I have the best job in the whole world as a dad.  I have the best boys.  I get to raise these guys and then stay with them to monitor progress. 🙂
5. I hope I don’t mess up.
6. I can’t wait to be a grandpa. I can, but you get the point.
7. I can’t wait to have all my boys and their families come to my house for parties.
8. I love our house.
9. I love that our boys love our house.
10. I love that we all still ride in the same car.
11. The Father’s Day cards are still made with construction paper. Those are the best.
12. What did I want for Father’s Day? I wanted to spend time with my kids.
13. We have started working on business ideas for the boys. It’s never too early. Teach a man to fish…

Please Wrap It Up. This is Plenty.

Those are my thoughts on Father’s Day this year. God, I hope you will bless me with so many more. If not, please let my boys know you are their first father and I’m here because you thought I could handle this. They will find you through me, and hopefully me through you.

I love you guys that came before me and I love you boys that are right on our heals! Happy Father’s Day!