Daddy

• Me: "Dad, I just am exhausted. I've worked 40 hours this week so far, and it's only Friday. I have 6 finals next week and a concert every single day. I don't have time to eat or breathe and I'm so tired I can't even form a coherent sentence."
•          Dad: "Honey, I understand how tired you are. Mom and I are so proud of you and we're praying for you. Keep trying your hardest and sleep whenever you can. Remember, just like Grandpa Morgan always said 'This too shall pass'. I promise you'll make it out alive and you'll be grateful for all of your hard work one day. I love you.

- EVERY single semester before finals week, I always call my dad and break down to him and our conversations usually consist of something like this. He is always the first person I call, because my dad has a gift of immediately calming people down. He has the most calm and peaceful presence about him, because he is so close to The Spirit that you can't help but just be relaxed around him. This is a gift that is uniquely his that I've never experienced with anyone else.

• In my 22 years of life, I can honestly say that I have NEVER heard my dad get angry, raise his voice, complain or speak a negative word about another person. EVER. It just blows my mind at the amount of self-control my dad has. Example: my brother was 17 and my dad has just bought a brand new truck a couple weeks earlie and Casey wanted to take the truck camping with his friends, so my dad let him. Case accidentally backed into a tree stump while camping and broke the bumper. Casey came home pretty upset, not knowing how my dad would react. He came in the house and said "dad, come outside with me. I'm so so sorry, but I just got into a little accident." My incredible dad could see how badly my brother was beating himself up about this and my dad very calmly put his hands on casey's shoulders and said "well, you're gonna have to pay for it. But it's okay, because it can be fixed." Brings tears to my eyes everytime I think about that story.

• My dad is the absolute hardest worker I know. Hands down, no contest. He puts in over 40 hours at his job, EASY, comes straight home and is at church meetings almost every night. If he's not working or at church meetings, he is with my mom, grandkids, kids, or out visiting people in the ward or neighborhood who he feels like need a visit. And if he's not helping someone, then he's fixing something, buliding something, cleaning something, planting something, or preparing a talk. I think I could count on one hand when I've seen my dad say "I need a quick nap". My grandpa Morgan (his dad), ENGRANED the value of hard work in my dad and his brothers and that is the reason why they are all so successful. And I think it's safe to say that because of my grandpa, dad, and uncles, every single person in my immediate and extended family has learned to value hard work.
• My dad puts his family at the center of his universe. There is absolutely nothing he wouldn't do for my mom and his kids. It truly doesn't matter what time of day it is, I know that I can call him and he will stop whatever it is that he's doing to help me. Whether my car has run out of gas, my car died, my computer is working, (he is incredibly smart and handy if you didn't know...), I need a Priesthood blessing (which he is always willing, worthy and eager to do), or if I just need to talk. No matter what it is, he will stop his world to help me.
• My dad is possibly the funniest person you'll ever meet! He is soooo laid back and so he's the kind of person that you need to sit next to and just hear his little comments or jokes he says under his breath. Hilarious! And he can make my mom laugh harder than anyone else in this world can and it's one of my very favorite things to see that! I think I owe my sense of humor largely to him ;)
• My dad has been married to my mom for I think 35 years now and he is absolutely head-over-heels, crazy in love with her! He treats her with nothing but respect, admiration, gratitude, gentleness, kindness and love. The older I get, the more I realize how incredibly blessed I've been to have grown up in a home where I have never heard my parents argue, and seeing how much they genuinely love eachother and enjoy spending so much time together. My dad has set the bar pretty high for how his girls (my mom, sisters and me) should be treated and I am so grateful to have had this beautiful example of chivalry in my life.
• First 3 words that pop into my mind when I think of my dad is love, work, and humble. My dad is constantly quietly serving anyone and everyone. Every person that knows him knows that he is highly dependable and responsible. If they need something done, they know my dad will do it without question. He never EVER does things for attention and would never want the praise for all that he does, even though he deserves all the praise in the world for how much he does. My dad was the bishop for 6 years and during those last 3 years, 3 of my 4 grandparents (both his parents) were very sick and all passed away within a close amount of time eachother. It was not uncommon for our phone to ring at 3:00 in the morning and I would hear my dad get out of bed and leave, never ONCE complaining or letting us know who he was going to help. NEVER ONCE does he complain. Gosh, I don't know how he goes through life SO happy and so humbly. (actually I know exactly how he does it. Putting Christ and His Gospel at the very core of his life.) Whenever I'm home in the winter time and it's snowed during the night, I'll wake up early and my dad has been up for hours and our driveway, our 3 neighbors driveways, and the sidewalks have been shoveled. And he will never let me leave until he has scraped the snow off my car. Everytime I see him out there quitely shoveling the snow off my car so early in the morning, while it's freezing cold, it makes me cry. Every single time. Betcha didn't know that, huh daddy? Ha. Heck, I'm crying now just thinking about it.

Dad, I'm kind of speechless right now just thinking about you. The highest compliment that I can possibly think to pay you is this. Thank you so much for being so much more than a perfect daddy for me. Whenever I imagine my Heavenly Father, what He's like, the attributes He has, what it feels like to be in His presence, you immediately pop into my mind. It's going to be no surprise when we're all up in Heaven together for the first time and I see how similar to Him you are. Thank you for setting the bar so high for what I'm looking for in a husband. I only hope to marry a man of your calibar. I wish I had the words to tell you how much I love you. You are amazing daddy. I'll always be your "little surfer girl"!

Love you always,
Big Al.