Moving into a new home can be ridiculously stressful even more so when you have two under 5s running around under your feet. Add to that the fact the new home is gonna need a lot of TLC with limited time and resources and you soon find your stress levels rising. At this point you’d look to your father for their support and guidance to help make the journey a little easier. Having witnessed first hand my Dad near enough knock down and rebuild his home he would have been the man for the job. Unfortunately his passing means that just isn’t an option. Fortunately I  have a fantastic father in law giving the support needed.

Before I go any further, my mother in law is also fantastic and a godsend and she has without question helped to make this move go smoothly. Thank you. This website however is all about Dads and so my focus is on him.

A few weeks ago he came over armed with tools to the nines (there’s me with my little Ikea tool kit) ready to put a shed up. I was to be his assistant. Getting my hands dirty has never been a strong point for me. I come from a family filled with tradespeople but it was just never my thing. During the 6 weeks holidays I would sometimes have to go to work with dad and whilst my brother would be on the site fitting kitchens I would be in the van listening to music reading wrestling and football magazines, it just never appealed to me. However it’s my house and I’m not willing to just watch.

So we were putting this shed together attempting to follow instructions that didn’t make much sense at all. It was there that I actually managed to add a little value helping to find some sense amongst the diagrams, nails and screws. Where I couldn’t work it out his experience found improvised logical solutions and before we knew it (well within 6 hours or so) we had a shed.

A month or so on it is still standing so we can’t have done that badly. There is a huge amount of pride I feel when I look at it despite my minor role in it all. It serves as a reminder I have much to learn. I recognise I have my own skill sets that bring value to everyone around me. However as a father there will be many jobs my family will need me to sort as the years go by and I’m gonna need to tap into that inner Roye tradesman DNA (and I have no doubt I will) , for now though I’m fortunate I can continue to glean information from a wonderful, generous man who gives so much to not just his family but his community too. In the absence of my father I couldn’t have asked for a better teacher.

Thank you Michael Lambe for setting the standard and always being there.