How similar I am to my dad

Over the past few months, I've had some time to think about my family.  Some actions that I've recently taken have reminded me how close that I really am to the way my dad always seemed to me growing up.  While I mostly lived on the weekend at his house with the weekdays being at my mom's, I certainly did learn quite a bit from him.  He taught me to be kind and the consider others' needs before mine.  He taught me to do a good job and always put my best foot forward at work.  He taught me to always take care of family first and always remember where you came from. 

He was actually kind enough to allow me to stay with him when I was a smart-mouthed 18 year old. Clearly I knew everything and didn't mind telling him how awesome I was.  Yes, he even allowed me to continue to breathe afterward.  Even when I left on terrible terms and acted like a complete jerk to him, he still cared enough to love me through it. He even waited patiently for me to come around and apologize.  No, he didn't do anything wrong and he said he never held a grudge the entire time.  He felt disappointed in the way I acted and he had every reason to. 

My dad is awesome, he has always been awesome and he will always be awesome. On this father's day, I salute him.

Eye Contact

It dawned on me the other day, as I was walking between the cube farm at work, that people just don't look at you anymore.  Most likely they will give a cursory glance your way or even look up at the last second to pacify their own guilt in not making eye contact sooner, hoping that you've done the same or looked away already.  My grandfather taught me that when you shake someones hand, you look them in the eye until the greeting is complete.  I wonder if I've held true to that teaching over the years?  I know I've caught myself not looking at someone when they are speaking to me.  Whether I'm being or corrected or praised, I need to pay attention to the individual speaking to me and give them the proper respect of eye contact.

Perhaps all we need sometimes is a firm handshake, a smile and eye contact to make someone feel like we're really listening? To that end, I will continue to work on my own eye contact.  Hopefully I won't come across as starring, but rather making a statement of attention and caring.

What do you think?