My Main Man

Today officially ends the period of my life when I can casually brag to my friends that “my parents aren’t even 50 yet,” because today is June 30, 2017. Which means my father has officially reached half a century on this earth (aka he’s 50 y’all).

I think making it through five decades on this earth is something to celebrate, a time to bask in the love of so many people who admire and support you.  And so even though my dad spent his birthday in Japan (and it’s technically already July there), I felt like I should share just how important my dad really is to me.

To give some background about my dad, I think you need to understand how he grew up. I think it’s easy to look at where he is in life and assume he grew up well off in a perfect family much like I always did as a little girl. But about five years ago, my dad dragged us to his tiny home in Olethe, Colorado. I had to look up a few facts about the town to help adequately depict it and even then I was taken aback by the memories of this place. The town is 1.3 square miles at the foot of a plateau near the San Juan Mountains and the 2000 census put the medium household income at just $26,286, the same amount of money most college graduates make out of their first job. I remember driving to his old home, surrounded by fields and realizing that so much of what I had pictured about my hero’s childhood was so insanely different than I could’ve ever imagined. I had always known my dad as a hard worker, but staring out the car window at a tiny little high school, I realized this his path from being a teenager in this little town to my dad had definitely not been easy.

You see, his determination and commitment to working hard are the traits I admire most about him and the ones I hope to inherit and nourish in myself. He will always care about those around him, even if he struggles to actually express his emotions and instead opts to act like a cranky old fart (something the rest of his family can easily attest to).  I think for my dad working hard and providing for his loved ones is his love language. It’s how he shows those around him that he really, truly loves them and just wants their life to be easy, comfortable and most of all fun. But his devotion to providing and supporting our entire family is just one tiny piece of who he really is.

Because my dad is also one of the most passionate supporters of my dreams. He can stress and complain to my mom all the time about my job-searching abilities (I know he does it), but when the time actually comes for me to send in an application, he’ll question me about the position. Am I sure I want that job? Do I really see myself there? Is that part of my career path? More than anything, he believes in me. He believes that ultimately I will find the right path and go down it bravely. His trust is everything to me, and his commitment to helping me reflects on the unconditional love he has for all of his children. Because more than anything, my dad wants every one of his children to succeed and to accomplish the lives we dreamed of for ourselves. Growing up, no dream was too big because we had our mom and our dad to support us.  Even now, I feel powerful in the face of the unknown because I know that I have their support.

My dad is also the biggest goofball. Whether it’s pretending to be clueless in order to get your attention, or always butting in with a well timed “when the F**K did we get ice cream,” he’s the reason my sister and brother are such great jokesters (I probably take more after my mom in a desire to be funny but a sad acceptance that we’ll just never quite be there). Every single one of my friends tells me that spending a few hours with the Wood family is one of their favorite activities because we’re never too serious. We spend an insane amount of time laughing (and a good chunk arguing over politics too but we don’t have to go there yet). And I think that’s because we’ve grown up in a household full of laughter, where the best thing you can do is laugh at yourself.

And, even more importantly, my dad is a wonderful sport. More often than not, he’s actually the butt of the joke. And sometimes this turns into him pouting much like I would at 13, but a lot of the time he can suck it up and laugh along too. Even when they’re low punches because let’s be real— you don’t come out unscathed with the Wood clan. My dad is also just a blast, which I can say completely unbiased. For example, in elementary school my dad would come by and bring lunch for my sister and I to the cafeteria. After we ate, he would come outside for recess and orchestrate these giant games with all of the kids on the playground. He was eventually politely asked not to come back after a game of Red Rover ended poorly, but I can remember every kid in the class telling me how lucky I was to have my dad. How lucky I was to have him show up for me, to bring me a special lunch, and come play outside. I took pride in the fact that the other kids were jealous. I already knew that I had the best dad, but their envious looks were a nice confirmation.  

He’s also my biggest challenge in life. If you know us at all, you would be aware that our thoughts and perspectives on the world are so drastically different. His viewpoint comes from decades in the military, a completely different upbringing, and an additional 27 years on the earth. And this polar worldview has been crucial in forcing me to back up my thoughts, my opinions, my beliefs. Our “debates,” ie: screaming matches, have been the source of additional research, an expansion of my own narrow focus and of course, though I hate to admit it, a pride for my father. Because even when we’re unable to agree and instead force the entire family to sit in silence for the rest of the drive home, I admire that he is relentless. He fights for his beliefs and his viewpoints. He’s never scared to play devil’s advocate. He will question the mainstream belief system and refuse to back down. I am so lucky that my dad has pushed me to argue, to debate, to fight because I have a spine and a commitment to what I think is right— something I know stems from his pushing. No matter how many times I’ve said nasty things in the heat of the moment, these disagreements have helped me to grow immensely.

So I guess in summary my father is wise, funny, driven and caring. And really what more can anyone want in a dad? So even though I don’t always express it the right way, today is my time to make it so clear how much I love you dad. How much I need you. How grateful I am for you and everything you have done for me. How happy I am that you always pushed me, questioned me, supported me. You and mom are my world and I’m not sure I say thank you enough. So today, I have a ‘thank you’ and of course, an ‘I love you.’ You are so special and so loved by all of us.

Happy Birthday.

xx Your BraeBrae