Aged to Perfection...

Today is my dad's 70th birthday... we had a surprise party for him this past Saturday and it was great! He was super surprised and so happy to see everyone. Aside from it being a big number birthday, it was even more special to celebrate it because of what a challenging life my father has lived.

You see, when my dad was 17 years old, he was injured in a high school football game. Back then, they didn't know what they know now about the dangers of football. His neck was broken and his spinal cord severed. He never walked again and has had to deal with the challenges of being a quadraplegic (paralyzed from mid-chest down).

However, he went on to graduate high school, then college and then 3 other colleges to eventually get his doctorate of education in psychology. Today he is retired, but has a successful private practice and still sees clients. He has shown me that despite every negative challenge life had thrown at him, he was still able to build a successful career, meet a wonderful woman (my mother) and have a family (via adoption, my brother and i).

Family portrait time! i was about 7 here... wasn't my brother a cutie?

Being in a wheelchair with no use of his lower body, and limited use of his arms has been full of health risks... unrelated to this, he was diagnosed with colon cancer several years ago and was able to successfully beat that as well. But through it all, he has kept THE MOST positive attitude of anyone i have ever met. He has perservered where a lot of people would have given up, and he's shown me that despite his body being broken, his mind and heart are strong and steady.

Dad with little sister (left), his father (behind) and his brother (right)

In short, my father is my hero... without him i wouldn't have had the nice comfy life i had... he's provided our family with everything - a roof over our heads, food on the table, clothes on our backs, and a plethora of love, knowledge and understanding.

So, happy birthday to my dad, he is truly aged to perfection!