We want to celebrate our Dads this Father's Day. Here are 15 things we are eternally grateful that they taught us:
1. How to jump a car with cables.
Simply buying us jumper cables for Christmas the year we started driving would have been meaningless had there not been a live demonstration.
2. Precisely where to kick a male assailant (or an over-eager date) to make him forget about you fast -- and for illustrating what he was talking about on paper and not on our little brother.
3. How to marinate a steak.
If it isn't overnight, it isn't marinated. Period. Dad could always tell.
4. How school matters a lot, but so does knowing how to change a flat on a dark and lonely road in the middle of nowhere with no one around to help you.
5. That we were never to travel on dark and lonely roads in the middle of nowhere, like ever.
6. To give generously to charity.
Everyone needs a reminder that there is someone else who has less, who suffers more, who has things worse than you do. Help when and where you can -- because you can.
7. To never trust a cheater.
Someone who cheats with you will cheat on you -- although at the time Dad taught us this, I think the occasion was a 5th grade math test.
8. Always take the aisle seat on the plane.
Faster exit in case you need to make one. First one to the bathroom after the cart clears the aisle too.
9. Attending professional sporting events must be done seriously.
If you are busy gabbing up a storm or shoveling hot dogs in your mouth, you will have an excellent chance of missing the play of the game -- the one that will be repeated over and over and over again in the highlights reel. This will become a life regret, and a story that you will tell repeatedly for the rest of your life.
10. Always try to help your neighbors.
Having good neighbors will make a difference in your life. Good ones become extended family, people you can rely on in emergencies. Bad ones will make your life miserable. Do your best to help the neighbors and get along.
11. Holidays are for family, then friends -- in that order.
Celebrate holidays with your family, even if they live far away. Do your best to make them festive and happy occasions. Holidays are memory-makers.
12. Bring your lunch to work.
Eating out every day at lunch is a waste of money. You can still take a walk around the block, but just don't fall into the trap of spending $15 a day on a sandwich or salad that you could have made for yourself.
13. Save your money.
Even small amounts will add up. Everyone should save for a rainy day because every life will have at least a few of them.
14. Don't kill yourself with worry.
If you have 10 problems on Friday and don't think about them until Monday, there will be only three problems left. Besides, your mother worries enough for both of us, Dad would always say.
15. Honor our soldiers.
If you see a member of our military in the airport, go thank him for his service. He's defending you, after all.
