Happy Fathers Day

Hey Dad,

As I write this letter, I’m immediately met with thoughts reflecting on all the inherited traits and skill sets I received, and amplified from you. Such as when I took that stage, projecting my voice, I showcased something not by me, but a spoken word idolizing you. The standing ovation, and admiration I continue to receive today makes me thankful to display my family the way I did to have spectators reflect and pursue stronger relationships with their families from the testimonies I've learned so far. Yet the compliment I continue to ponder on comes from no other than you. When learning this penmanship started from you, but you never took the stage to share the possessions of your book of rhymes. I thank you for the gift to poetically write words destined to be read and shared with the ability to captivate inspiration. 

I thank you for this cheat code modeling to me what a man is capable of becoming in a time period with masculinity and manhood heavily scrutinized. Young men and boys have to question what is a man relying on women and society's ever changing definition of a real man, downplaying actual real men because of the lack of accountability trauma endured, to search for fictitious characters in media to model oneself afterwards. Having a childhood so precious to have a neighborhood full of families and dad’s I assumed was the norm, to  now grow into an age capable of creating and starting a family, my memories perceive others solely as a dream with an attack on nuclear families resulting in the cries we see as crimes on tv. 

Leadership seems to be innate wherever I go, from Youngstown, Dodge City, Madison, China, and now back in Miami as a teacher, this natural role of positively impacting lives I give credit modeling myself after you. I watched you help those in dire need have their own loved ones turn their back on them and never once have I seen you reluctant to help, from family to strangers your role to guide and assist always has been a tremendous help. And today I exemplified your doings to embrace becoming a figure of modeling to a kid who didn't know the levels of love Paul Jackson Sr could love. So I'm excited to see how that testimony plays out similar to the testimonies you have played out.   

My perspectives of you have heightened, fully embracing the purpose God installed on me to forgive myself when I questioned your doings of working and providing to not be as intentional with the demands Jamaal and I once required for dad to physically be in attendance of games and academic events knowing you were working. A sacrifice I can imagine that you had to swallow and put aside knowing I would reach this point in life to understand a man has to do what a man has to do. In all I’m blessed to see you have retired to enter the next chapters of life as grandad to Giselle. You have raised Jamaal to have a loving wife to represent the Jackson family in a way I’m excited to demonstrate myself when the time comes. So till the time comes and I get to see the stages of life you have seen, I share with you happy father day dad.

Love your second born,

Paul Jackson II