Daddy was a part of the baby boomer generation. He embodied the characteristics of that generation to a T: work-centric, independent, goal-oriented, and competitive. Growing up, I didn't see him too much because he was always working as hard as he could to provide the best life possible for his family.
As a kid, I hated him for it.
I didn't understand his viewpoint at all, but all I knew was that Daddy wasn't around to spend time with his kids. Now, I don't harbor any animosity towards him as I am now old enough to understand where he was coming from.
But I still can't help but feel a twinge of sadness that we didn't spend more time together during my childhood. I wish that my dad had gone against the grain and sacrificed something professionally to spend that extra time with us. I understand that this may be a generational thing, but what I learned from my dad was also what I didn't want to emulate.
I know that men are traditionally considered the breadwinners of the family, but money can't buy memories.
Whenever I have kids, I'm going to make sure that I'm around to see them growing up because I don't want them to ever feel like I did as a child.