Dad Shed

In the fall, my parents decided that they needed a shed in the backyard and got to work planning and purchasing the materials. When we were there in November, all the adults pitched in to help with the "barn raising" (complete with watching a few good clips from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers). They got it assembled and covered with a tarp and everyone was really pleased with the progress. However, we didn't get it all done - and my dad had a surgery on his hand scheduled. So the day before surgery, Jenna and I brought our kids to play inside while we helped my dad set the plywood and shingle the roof. 


Shingles are actually a skill that I have. When I was about 12, my dad re-shingled our roof in Ephraim and I helped him a lot and learned the process. When we were newly married, Cal reshingled Grandma McAllister's roof and I got a lot of practice in there. So even though I'm not an expert, I felt like this was something I could do to help. The three of us had a great time working together, even though the roof was incredibly steep and there were a couple of times that I thought I was going to fall off for sure. 

It was COLD outside, but we worked until the sun went down and we were freezing and we couldn't feel our fingers anymore. My dad woke up and went with my mom to his hand surgery and Jenna and I finished out the roof by ourselves. It's not perfect, but I think we did a pretty great job and I know my dad is so relieved to have the roof protected and done. I have zero doubt that if we hadn't been able to come help, he would have been out there the day after the surgery with one hand bandaged and the other trying to hold the nail and hammer at the same time. Surgery or not, I'm grateful that my dad taught me skills like this and that he continues to teach me and help me learn new skills. It reminds me of this comic: 

When I remembered that comic and went to look for it, I didn't remember that it had the daughter fixing the roof - but it just makes it even more applicable to this experience and the skills and opportunities given to me by my dad.  I hope that I can give my kids the same opportunities, skills, and confidence.