Leader of the band

Leader of the band by Dan Folberg is a song that came out I think in the late 70s or early 80s.

In the weeks preceding my father's death, I would always find my self listening to that song. Most of the time in my car while driving or when listening to my ipod. I would play it over and over again

There is one particular part of the song that actually struck me (and it still does months after my dads demise) and it goes...

"my life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man..."

I guess that line tells it all how I view my father; if I could be half the man he is then I would be a very good father, husband, friend. He has earned the love and respect not only from us his immediate family and relatives but also from other. The surprising part is he is just an ordinary person (but extraordinary in a lot of ways), you know, he is rank and file employee who works hard, goes home to his wife and kids, had the most important goal of being able to send all his kids to college. Nothing fancy with my dad, he doesn't even sound profound. He just "have the basics", but he was exceptional in those "basic" roles...

He was a good and loyal husband to my mom

He was a good father to us his kids. Kind but firm

He was a good provider who worked long hours to give us a very comfortable life

He was a good employee to the company he worked for

He was a good friend

If you ask me to paint a picture of a perfect man, I'll just give you a photo of my dad :-)

Dad, I may have always told you that I look like mom, but you're the kind of man I want to be and believe me I'm trying hard. You did such a splendid job you're making it difficult for anyone. I love you