My Father's Son

Damn hard time in the nation, pockets empty, not much work for a body to do, and the gap between the rich and the poor just keeps widenin'. Feels like we're 'bout to lose control of everything.

I'm bout to get canned like Late Show ham, did you know? Guess I coulda taken their offer of $4 an hour less and 20 hours less a week, but that seemed a piss-poor deal to me. I ain't gonna let a damn company strip me of my title, pay me less, and have me help somebody else do what I already know how to do. I ain't getting' fired. I ain't steppin' down 'cause I suck at my job. People there seem to love me. Doesn't matter though. New plan to make some rich people richer by saving on overtime and insurance. I don't matter to them and regardless of how anybody feels about it I'm goin'.

I'm glad to have had the job at all. I wasn't much of a leader before but I know I can do it now. Maybe I'm not the best at it yet but I'm better than I was. In the end it just seems to boil down to havin' a plan of action and dealin' with the changes to that plan. I've learned to do that. That's how I know that even if I'm getting' canned I'm gonna land on my feet. I'll work with my dad full time and collect my severance pay. I'll use what contacts I have to get my princess a job so the work load isn't all on me. If not I'll find sumthin' else to do. I shouldn't have to hard a time findin' work. I ran my dad's business for months, I've been a supervisor, I've worked customer service for over four years with the same company, I have my associate's degree.

My father only had a sixth grade education. He grew up poor and always worked hard. With that modest bit of education and a determination I haven't seen in many men, he's built an empire. He runs a rather successful business that keeps several families fed and has provided his children a better life than he had. He can go just about anywhere in this town and be respected, trusted, and well known. He's lived a hard and colorful life. He's been through hell and conquered it. My dear June likes to say He's the most interesting man in the world.

In my toughest times, I don't wonder what Jesus would do, I ask myself what my dad would do. His spirit is close to mine that I almost always know exactly what he would do. I'm glad for that. I feel that when I do my best and I try my hardest I just about become him. I'm my own man but I feel I'm fit to be a suitable substitute for that greatest of all men. I hope that when I'm a father my children will look up to and respect me the way I do him.

It's because of him that in these tryin' and desperate times I know I'll be okay if I use my head and work hard. If my June will hold the ladder I'll climb it to the top. I am my father's son and I will endure and survive and succeed.