My Uncle Joe died this past Sunday. Those are hard words to say. Though I would have never thought of calling him anything else but Uncle Joe, the reality is, the term uncle does not adequately describe his role in shaping me. As a child, there was a hole left in my life by divorce and my Uncle Joe filled it. I needed someone to teach me the things a father teaches a son and he stepped into that space. Uncle Joe was a gift.
I am not sure Uncle Joe ever gave much thought about how he was influencing my life, he simply was being himself, and that was more than enough. Uncle Joe would come home at 3 pm from work. My mother picked me up at 5:30 pm. Those 2 ½ hours were like heaven to me. I followed him everywhere, especially out to his shop behind the house.
It was there he taught me to work with tools, fix cars, not shy away from learning new skills, and to not be afraid of getting dirty. Outback as we called it, he showed me how to deal with mistakes. When Uncle Joe made a one he did not beat himself up about it, he saw the humor in it and then he fixed it. He taught me the dignity working hard and of serving others, especially your family and friends, with your knowledge, skills and creativity. He also demonstrated me what it looked
…show more content…
More often than not, he would let me help out. As time went on, far fewer things seemed impossible. There have been moments, especially early in our marriage, when my wife expressed surprised at what I built or fixed. I usually responded by telling her that there is nothing I cannot do. I was not bragging, I was just passing on the truth I learned from my Uncle Joe. The seemingly impossible can almost always be accomplished, especially if you are not afraid of trying and are willing to learn as you