In the last year, my dad and I have started having video chats every Friday. We do the normal check in, what is going on with each others lives, but what we most look forward to it our philosophical discussions. I can say, without exception, I have never met my intellectual match. Sure, I have met people who were smarter than me. And people who had different intellectual interests. But my dad and me? We are on the same intellectual level and we have the same interests. The apple does not fall far from the tree with us. We can get into some fantastic heated discussions, and we also give each other different perspectives.
Sometimes it's uncanny how similar we are to each other. Like the other day, he told me, after I had lamented about some work bumps, "Heather, when you are writing your stuff, just remember, you are a force of nature."
I was like, are you serious dad?! Because it was so surprising to hear my dad tell me something I call myself! I had to ask him if he had seen my twitter bio, but of course he hasn't. He's just reflecting back to me, what I am. And him too.
I always thought of my dad as kinda like Indiana Jones. He always reminds me with his stories of archeological digs and interest in the prehistoric. Our conversations tend to have a big smattering of zen philosophical attitude. I still remember the conversation we had when we talked about opening an Italian restaurant in heaven. (Actually outside the gates of heaven, because there would be more foot traffic there.) I told him he would have to go first and scope out the good location, but I'd come and work in the kitchen later. That we can laugh and be pragmatic at the same time, is so... refreshing. About death. And Heaven (something neither of us believe in.)
So this is a post to say, that I am loving the intellectual discussion we have on a weekly basis. Dad, I love you! We didn't have a very good time being friends 20-30 years ago, but I think what we have now makes up for all those times. I look forward to our conversations, probably as much as you do!
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