Dad

One who would have experience working with him could say that he had a big mouth, but was one of the soft-hearted, honest, and hardworking contractors; nothing like ............... He always played a fair game that may have brought most people like himself under some unfair deals in the construction business.

This was not his only gift; dad was the most generous man that I knew. To this day people described him .......... He was kind and still is a kind man today.

Every Christmas time we were showered with gifts and toys, not forgetting, “Golden fried chicken.” He tried to be the best dad I remember him to be.

During my early days I ruminated about us being privileged children compared to the other children on the lane that we grew up. While others built “Kaboways” and “Secs,” we had two wheeled and three wheeled bikes as regular toys. It was fun learning to ride my very own tricycle but equally fun seeing our friends run away, leaving our bikes behind ................ lane.

“You all will never have anything if you keep giving it to everybody” rang in my ears up until I was in high school when I could not find an umbrella that he bought me. The tone of his voice could only force you to become ......

Fortunately, I was always head strong and I never allowed my fear of his voice to direct my path of generosity in the future. At the time, he just wanted us to care for what he had invested in.

He played the guitar, or so I have heard. However, listening to music was a big part of our weekend rendezvous whenever we got into the car. No wonder my siblings and myself are all gifted with some form of musical talent.

Despite those fun times, my he was extremely strict. Not that he briefed us about it, but when he called our names, it seemed like we had to line up in straight order to his thunderous voice, awaiting the next instruction.

One day, I developed a liking for makeup and decided to use a marker to draw on my eyebrow and enhance a flat mole on my face. Forgetting to clean it off before he saw me, I was sternly order to “go wash my face off.” It was because of his strong belief in his religion that I should not attempt to “dress” like the world, or was it that I was too young to be so vain?

........... as he was affectionately known, was a man of the word of God. Not that I remember, but he was a well-respected elder of the church and had converted many to his religious belief. In Suttle ways, people who knew me while growing up would remind me of the Christian based home I was a part of, if I were found to be doing anything that didn't represent "Christ".

As I grew older, weekend travels to the country moved to town. He had recently constructed a three-story guest house called ....... located on the main street out of the city. We often visited and enjoyed sleepovers with .............suddenly became part of our lives.

Because our house was not too far from the guest house, my siblings and I would walk down to the site before and after its completion.

If you want to hear more. look out for the next month’s insert on the third chapter. I promise you this is just a buildup of what is to come. You won't be bored or disappointed. Keep reading, there is MUCH more instore.