1 of 1

Hey Dad,

It's bitterly cold outside, but spring is coming. I can hardly wait because I'm a 'plant guy'. I like flowers, shrubs, ornamental grasses, and trees of all kinds.

This time of year, I eye the plants in my yard and see what their prospects are for the summer. I check the red twig dogwood branch for swelling buds, pull back the old growth from last year's perennials to see tender shoots poking up, and blame the deer for nibbling the tips off my white pines.

With that in mind, you can imagine the battle that ensued within me a couple of hours ago when I saw my oldest son, Ben, tromping across the yard carrying a sharp bow saw.

Twenty minutes earlier, he had asked me how to make a sling shot … not the kind with tubular metal and high-strength surgical hose, but the old-fashioned kind made from two rubber bands and a 'Y' shaped branch from a tree.

Minutes later, something outside the window caught my eye. It was Ben, with saw in hand, walking across the side yard with determination in his face. I knew instantly which tree he was heading for—my flowering crab. It had been rescued from a demolition project, and for the last four years, I had groomed and trained it into a nice shape.

"He has an entire woods to choose from, and he's going to cut a honking big branch off MY flowing crab," I thought. That's when the battle started. Gardener vs. Dad. The gardener had plenty of valid arguments, but the dad inside of me said, "Hey, I'm growing kids, not trees."

Later, Ben walked by the window holding the honking big branch cut from my 'baby' and came inside to show me the beginnings of his sling shot. He smiled and looked to see my response. This was crucial—one moment of weakness, and I would blow it and teach him that trees are more important to me than he is.

I looked at the severed limb and said, "Wow, that's a good stick. That'll make a great sling shot."

Victory.

Dad, is your son or daughter constantly asking to use your ___________ (fill in the blank)? Take a deep breath, smile, and let them. You know what? Flowering crabapples, shiny cars, gleaming tools, and the things you're holding on to don't matter squat, but the kids who mess them up—mean everything.

You 'da dad,

© 2010 Todd Wilson. Used by permission

 1 of 1

share this page

				Try an Issue of Men of Integrity Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Men of Integrity coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Give Men of Integrity as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

FREE Newsletter Sign up for the Men of Integrity Newsletter (All fields required)    RSS Feed   RSS Help