Sometimes loved ones influence us in ways we can not fathom until they are gone.  You start to see how strong they made you and the impressions they left on you depending on your relationship with them.  When all that is left of them is memories, you remember every detail about that loved one: their voice, smile, laugh, disposition, and just their over all presence.

The things I remember most about my father was his intelligence and toughness; he definitely did not take any crap from anyone and especially from his horse… haha!  Pop had no fear it seemed: I remember as a kid being at the speedway where Pop and his friends had a race car and Pop was the driver.  The race car was a 1955 Chevy, and it was red and gold while sporting the number eleven on the sides.  Pop went around the track once and something went wrong with the engine, and he had to be towed back into the pit area.

I remember after the number eleven broke down, my Grandma laughed under her breath and said, “Good.”  I think it is safe to say, Grandma was worried about her son; after all, anything can happen during a race.  I do not know if Pop ever tried to race again or not; I just remember the red and gold race car sitting in the driveway, and Pop used to let me sit in it, and I would pretend I was racing because we watched NASCAR every Sunday.

I recall I was trail riding with Pop and Everett one day, and Pop’s horse, Champ, was acting up some, so Pop just started yanking on the bit some until Champ straightened up while Pop was getting on Champ’s case; Everett and I looked at each other and started laughing; it was really funny.  Soon after he straightened Champ up, he took off and ran Champ up a hill effortlessly, and I was thinking, “Now, that is a cowboy!”  I could not get my horse to run without trying to throw me off by stopping suddenly, and there was my Pop making it look easy.

You see, my father may have moved on, yet he is still with me; I feel his presence in my soul and he is telling me not to give up on life.  Pop was one of my heroes, and he never gave up.  He had dreams just like anyone else, though he never talked to me about them except he wished he had enough land to keep his horse.  Pop had a wife and three kids to support, and he did that to the fullest of his ability.

Pop attended Alamance Community College after getting a first shift job with GKN in Mebane after working years on third shift, and he worked there doing industrial maintenance until he was diagnosed with colon cancer.  I also know after Pop asked Jesus into his heart, he read the Bible every morning before work, and he and my mother started attending church regularly, and I am so happy and proud of my father for deciding to get saved; I also thank Everett and his faith in leading Pop to Jesus.

I will never lose the memory of saying goodbye for now to Pop, but I will never forget who he was and what he did for me.  Is it not comforting knowing we will see our loved ones again?  I know it is comforting for me.  There are a lot of family members I can not wait to see again because I miss all of them so much, but every one of them left a good impression on me and my life, and for that I am grateful beyond words.

Take care and God bless!

Chris