Father Figures, Father Figurines, No Batteries, But Life Lessons Included

I know that Father's day is over but who is to say that I can't celebrate solemnly and late. The first and second picture you see is my Father Edward Graham. Even though by definition he is my Grandfather, by my standards and expectations of the world, he is my father. My humor, morals, lack there of, the true blood and essence of who I am is all because of this man. He has taught me everything from building rocking chairs to, "just because its by the dumpster doesn't mean its broken". Through all of the hardships and heartaches that life has thrown my way there is one man that can solve it all with a simple phrase or something to make you laugh about. I call him Papa. And that is exactly what he is to me. My father, mentor, my favorite comedian, problem solver, and more so my entire world. Thanks for everything you do Papa, I love you more than you can ever realize.
So that the title gets it's full meaning I have decided to also include other father figures in my life that in one way or another shaped me to be the person I am today. The first of which is a guy by the name of Steven Chase Puckett. Now don't be confused because this is no ordinary man, nor will he ever be. When I first got to know him I was merely a student in an English classroom who could care less about grammar or the rules. Luckily I found a teacher willing to bypass some standards in order to fully tap into our creative minds. But this is not where the story ends. A year went by and he became just Puckett, still my teacher, but quickly becoming my friend. A yearbook had to be published and for some reason or another I would like to think he chose me to be on the front lines of this battle. But he was too big for a small town and there were things he wanted and not even my sad eyes could hold him back. He moved away to pursue his administrative duties and without a doubt succeeded in every way. Another year went by and I graduated, and by this time Puckett was still Puckett, but he was also someone I looked up to, wanted to have ambition like and more so keep my friend. Now we keep in contact sharing witty txt messages or phone conversations. In fact he is coming down to see me today, an eight hour drive, and money he could save, but he proves time and time again why he makes my top list. Thank you Chase for teaching me that there are no boundaries, and that life is the story we make it.
Next I have a recent influence in my life Jason Walker. While all of these people are like father figures to me, molding me like clay in sculptor's hands, Jason found a way to do this in ways I didn't realize until later. When I met Jason Walker I was standing on a tennis court thinking about how great practice was going and how my serves actually got the speed in the box they needed. He walks up and just as we talked about in later conversations, I thought, "Who the hell is this guy?". I didn't get to know him as a tennis player then however, but as a teacher. He taught art and still does, but more so he took the yearbook over after Puckett left and made a new class entirely committed to graphic arts. I accepted him with an uneasy handshake only with the trust of what Puckett had told me. After a week or two I began to find out the real Jason Walker, a bold, intelligent man that lets little get in his way and even helps others push brick walls down. Jason is now one of my greatest friends and I hope that we stay that way until my stack of dirt is chosen. Jason is married now, to a beautiful woman at that. I think I respect him most for his unsaturated talent, his will to prevail, and most of all his friendship. Thanks Jason for being the illustration behind the story, keep it alive with your sketches, and move people with the colors you chose.

Your extremely grateful to have so many father figures in his life, blogger.

Adrian G.