I don’t recall which friend uses the line, “Glad you were born,” as a way of saying, “Happy Birthday.” But I like it.
Today Dad celebrates number 75. I have been slowly staggering my way through my series 20 for 20. These reflections on things I have learned after 20 years with the same faith community promoted me to muse about mentors and mentoring. I could be construed from that post that my parents were deficient. Not true.
I remember my first pastor, the late Bro. Justice. He preached at the Ordination Service in which me and my brother Paul were ordained. Bro. Justice remarked that we had good genes. He knew both sets of my grandparents and, of course, my parents. I cannot disagree. But, since I am not a hard determinist and think people make decisions against their natural grain, I believe there are enough anecdotal stories over 75 years to demonstrate the sort of person my Dad determined to be. His interest to be a particular sort of person in the face of other possibilities remains to this day.
So, with that, though Mom will have to point this out to him, Dad, “Glad you were born! Happy Birthday!”