*Mark Smith wrote on Linkedin*
In nearly four decades I’ve only seen my father seriously disappointed in me once.
I was 17. My father and I drove up to the bag drop at our golf club. A middle aged man ran over to grab our clubs and shoes.
As we parked the car I asked my father if he ever felt bad about seeing a man his age in a service role, hustling for a tip while we go play golf.
My father turned to me with a look of disgust which betrayed a disappointment in me as well as an introspective sadness that he had raised such a clueless son.
Paraphrasing... “Son, I need you to understand one thing right now ... if a man provides *shelter, food, education, and love* to his family, it doesn’t matter one bit what he does legitimately for a living ... he is my equal. *Money can make life easier, but it doesn’t make you a man*. Don’t ever, ever ask me a question like that again.”
I count that as one of the most important lessons of my life. Not only has it helped me stay respectful of others (I hope) but, truthfully, it has saved me emotionally in times when I’ve felt less successful than other men — and there have been a lot of those times.
To those of us who work hard every day for our families — no matter what we do or what we earn legitimately — let’s keep our heads high and support each other.
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