This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Happy Father's Day to a 'Giant' of a Dad

A Peachtree Corners gardener shares her memories.

My Dad grew up in the '50s and '60s on a potato farm in rural southeast Michigan. Along with his three brothers and two sisters, they helped their parents take care of the farm by doing everything from planting, working the machinery, hoeing the fields, harvesting the crop and taking it to market.

 Often missing days of school to labor in the fields, the kids worked hard, what would surely be considered too hard by today's standards.  Yet, I've never once heard my dad, or any of his siblings for that matter, complain about life on the farm.

 Instead, our family events are filled with glorious stories about the kids running on the rafters of the barn, feet practically permanently stained with dirt after working barefoot for days on end and meals anchored with local produce hand-picked hours before. 

Find out what's happening in Peachtree Cornerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 The duty of unending strenuous chores were actually appreciated when reflected back upon as adults knowing they were taught important life lessons in the sweltering summer sun between the rows of potatoes.

 Fast forward to the early '80s to life as an adult, as a father, raising his own family. My dad, who towers over most people at around 6'4", had a backyard garden that was the size of most yards here in suburban Atlanta.

Find out what's happening in Peachtree Cornerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 We grew everything under the sun (pardon the pun!), ate what was in season, canned what we couldn't eat for winter meals and shared and swapped produce with neighbors and friends. We had a raspberry and strawberry patch, fruit trees of many varieties and grape vines.

 I remember one year my younger brother Ryan and I asked if we could plant pumpkins. My mom cautiously agreed, and by fall, our pumpkins had literally taken over our entire garden.

 Ryan and I set up a small stand in our yard selling pumpkins for 50 cents a piece and by the end of the day thinking we were millionaires because we had more money in our pockets than we'd ever had. Really, the lessons we learned that season about abundance combined with the spirit of entrepreneurship where what was worth the million.

 My mom and dad divorced when I was 8. We stayed in the house with the garden and the berry patches and fruit trees and my dad moved into a small, one bedroom apartment.

Although I was too young to realize it at the time, my dad was wilting not only because of the change going on in his personal life but also because he didn't have any land to call his own to plant his seeds, to start his life again.

 He soon joined a community garden, where I have vivid memories of helping him roll out the hose to water his plot and searching through tangled up vines to find zucchini and cucumbers that were ready to pick.

 I remember thinking how trusting people must be to have faith that no one would steal their produce, and how wonderful it was to run into other gardeners, chatting about what was growing, sharing bites of the season's first juicy red tomato.

 Dad has been composting his whole life, has never sprayed the yard with pesticides and now in his 60s, continues gardening and, along with his wife Brenda, has a thriving vegetable and flower garden. In my book, he is the God of Urban Homesteading, the original micro-farmer.

 People often ask me when I became interested in green living. The thing is- it's not a question of when. It's just how I was raised; this is my normal.

 One of the best gifts my father ever gave to me was an understanding and respect of living a sustainable lifestyle before living green even became a popular buzzword.

 His father gave him the same gift, which was innately and effortlessly passed to me, which I'm hoping to pass to my children.

 At a play date a mom overheard my daughter tell her friend, "My Grandpa is so tall he can reach the clouds. When he picks me up I can reach the clouds and the whole outer space!"

 So, this Father's Day, I want to say thank you Dad for teaching me without knowing, sharing your knowledge without forcing, thus shaping me into the person I am today. And thank you for being larger than life to my children. You're more than just Dad or Grandpa to us. You're our Jolly Green Giant.

 Happy Father's Day Dad!

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Peachtree Corners