This is an easy one.
My father, who I have referred to throughout this blog as The Old Man is a man who has most positively impacted my life.
I lost The Old Man almost nine years ago to cancer. He not only impacted my life (past tense) but he also continues to impact my life in ways that I’m still understanding. To this day, there are certain gestures I will make; expressions I will use, even the inflection in my voice when I deliver them sounds like The Old Man
My dad was a good man. He wasn’t perfect. He gave my siblings and I a good life, and he gave me a great model to live up to. He wasn’t abusive, controlling or an all-around asshole. But he as his flaws as we all do.
The Old Man was the ultimate pragmatist. He had a way of cutting through all the bullshit and getting right to the heart of the matter. Let me give you an example:
Many, many years ago ,on my wedding day, I was getting ready at his house – since X1 and I were getting married at a church 5 minutes from where I grew up.
I was a nervous wreck. True, x1 and I had already been living together for a few years but THIS WAS MY WEDDING DAY. My best man must’ve thought I was wiggling out because The Old Man came downstairs to talk to me.
“Rob. You and X1 have already been living together for a bit. What you do today is not going to change your day-to-day life in the least “.
He was absolutely right. This wasn’t as if we would be walking though the threshold of our home for the first time together; our lives being irrevocably altered. I was going to do all the same things I had seen the weddings I had been filing for the prior 3 years. That’s it. I was still overcome with emotion during the ceremony. It I wasn’t scared or panicking. It certainly it wasn’t cold feet. Looking back at how things ended between us, maybe I could have used some cold feet that day.
There a great quote in Superman Returns (2006) from Jor El (Marlon Brando). As part of the story, Jor El creates a series of recording for his newborn son to listen to, presumably after Krypton is destroyed and he lands on Earth. In one of them, Jor El says:
“You will travel far, my little Kal-El, but we will never leave you-even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son.”
I already had quite committed to memory by the time Kid 1 was born in 2007. But when The Old Man died, it took an entirely different meaning. It’s a lot like the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “The Visitor” in that regard.
Describe a man who has positively impacted your life.
Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like, comment and subscribe to my blog below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media as well! Check out my most recent posts…
- Rob’s Retro Movie Review: This is Spinal Tap (1984) – The Movie That Scaled to Eleven
- A Death in the Family (And My Disposable Income): My Life in Comics
- The Supporting Cast: Navigating the Eras of Male Friendship
- Life is What Happens: A Look Back at My Non-Existent 2025 Vision
- The Moment I Walked Inside a Hallmark Movie
The article “The Old Man and The Younger Man” first appeared on Rebuilding Rob
Rebuilding Rob 
Leave a comment