Hitch-hiker

I always thought of myself as a brave person, but compared to my dad, I feel like a complete wimp:) As most of you know, my dad was such a people person! He could be walking down the street and it always seemed that every person we passed he would know. I will never forget impatiently waiting in the truck as a child as my mom and dad always seemed to be the last two people out of any building we went to; why? Because they enjoyed the company of others. This company mostly consisted of close family and friends, church members, fellow co-workers, sports fans, and coaches, but I will always remember the time when the company of another stepped outside of this comfort zone that I was familiar with. One characteristic that I truly admired about by dad was that he loved helping others, especially when he saw one standing by the side of the road, all alone. (Yes, my dad picked up hitch-hikers.) I was a young girl when this first happened, but I will never forget the courage and compassion I saw in his face when he told me the stories these men had shared with him. He loved learning of other people's lives and giving when he could, because we had been so fortunately blessed as a family. Give and you will receive, not necessarily here on this Earth, but in Heaven; this is what I learned through his actions, not his words, and to tell the truth, I believe that actions speak louder than words because I seemed to listen and understand this concept on a deeper lever (please remind me of this when I begin parenting :)). Thank you for showing me how to be a humble person and where to look for people who are always searching for a kind and giving heart.

-Brittany Janae