Good Morning! I have a guest post
this morning written by my sister, Shari. In honor of Father’s Day and our own
father, she writes from the heart about an important facet of child rearing –
discipline. Something, perhaps, that is sorely needed now as much as it ever
was. Enjoy her missive and please feel
free to comment. We would love that. Blessed Father's Day to all.
WHITE HAT BLACK HAT
Lucas McCain where
are you?
By Sharon Wible
The home of my childhood was prosaic
in its structure, provincial in its worldview and moral in its consequences for
good and bad behavior. In the minds of myself and my siblings there were
not a lot of questions as to what was acceptable conduct. Punishment was swift
and painful and every wrong doing was instantly judged as having been done “on
purpose” ruling out the necessity of a jury. All misdeeds went straight to the
judge for sentencing.
This method happens to be a very
quick way to bring order to a household filled to the brim with children.
EXCEPT, Lucas McCain would disagree
and because I loved him, I had to reevaluate the discipline style so feared in
my youth.
The Rifleman had the same philosophy
as my dad for taking care of bad behavior. BUT he had a lot of help! The bad
guys always wore black hats and sneered when they spoke. The good guys wore
white hats and were pleasant, happy people.
Lucas had a rapid-fire Winchester.
Over and over again this truth was
reiterated; if someone threatened your life you had every right to protect
yourself. When the bad guy drew his weapon, the Winchester meted out
judgment pure and true.
With his son, Lucas taught lessons of
right and wrong with humor and hope. When the son strayed from the path,
justice was given pause as mercy worked its way into the son’s soul. When the
natural consequences of misguided actions took their toll, the pain of
disappointing his father seemed punishment enough for the boy.
But television fantasy doesn’t play
too well in the lives of non-scripted people in the real world. My dad didn’t
own a gun and there were no evident criminals running loose. Dad also
understood his children were not “evil” in the truest sense of the word. But at
the end of a long and harried day at work with mom at the stove and kids
running wild; order was necessary and swift correction cut short a longer war.
If love and respect for the father
has been cultivated, disappointing dad will often be deterrent enough to keep
the bad deeds at bay.
Thank you Lord for fathers!
Image: Our mom, Elaine and our dad, Wendell.
Great commemntary. Your dad was such a great guy,always with a hearty laugh and smile, one could tell he was structured. He was the direct opposite of your quiet, God fearing momma. Love the picture and that is how I remember them. God Bless you and your family Sharon.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for reading and commenting, Rita. It means so much to hear from those who knew them. God Bless. =0)
DeleteNice post here. Kudos to you and your sister for sharing it! :-)
ReplyDelete=0) Thanks, Jen.
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