“Because dads are someone you look up to, no matter how tall you have grown.”
– Anonymous
I still remember climbing aboard my father’s battered old Rajdoot as we rushed to get in time to catch the school bus. My tiny hands could barely hold onto his massive shoulders while he drove me and my sister to the pickup point religiously every day. And on the certain days when we missed the bus because of our lazy fits, he would even oblige to drive us all the way to the school – through sun, rain, and fog. “Nothing doing, every class is important. You have to work hard and earn every opportunity that you are getting to learn”, he used to reprimand us in his stern voice whenever we tried to get out of school with the missed bus excuse.
So, whenever someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I used to say (supposedly as relayed by my mother, can’t believe I was so sassy and got away with it!), “Whatever I will be, I will make sure I earn more than him.” A part of it was of course the snub for pushing us to go to school every day, without fail, even when we missed the bus. But most of it was because I thought, like every child, my father was epitome of success.
My father got multiple degrees to his name through his schooling, ICWA and LLB. Education has always been very important to him. He has raised me and my sister to be independent, logical, and empathetic individuals who don’t have to depend on anyone. Not even him. He got us into the best of the schools, paid for every tuition and every tantrum.
So, when I finally started truly earning with a proper job, I took my first pay slip to him. I showed him that tiny number which would have meant a lot to the sassy kid back then, but a lot more to him now. It was more than what he was earning. But that salary gap couldn’t have been possible without him waking up with us every day to take us to school. It couldn’t have been possible without his scoldings and sacrifices. I was starting from where he is almost ending his career now in his 60s. That is because of the privilege, care, and principles that my father surrounded us with throughout our life.
And FYI. His reaction after seeing the pay slip – “You have to work hard and earn every rupee that you are getting to make.“
I suppose fathers are there, after all, to push you farther.
