Make Life Count!

Chapter 2: Be a Positive Presence

Chuck, Lonnie M. and Julie Hitchcock

" A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather one with a certain set of attitudes." – Hugh Downs

His name was Virgil Calvin Hitchcock. (I've often wondered what his mother must have been thinking when she selected that name.) But his friends called him "Chuck." He was born in a rural community in Collin County, Texas, the second of six boys. A young man during the Depression, he held a number of jobs. He worked in a hardware store, drove a truck, worked as a milkman, ran a gas station, and dreamed of owning his own business, a dream that wasn't fulfilled until after his retirement from working for a utility company for thirty-three years. At the age of 34, he married Lonnie Mae Hight. And seven years after their marriage, they had a daughter - me.

Since I was not only his only child but also a child born when he was past forty, I was the light of his life, and he made me feel special. He believed in me, and since I valued his opinion on everything, I believed in me, too. My dad was truly a "positive presence" not only in our home – where my mother and I were blessed by his smile, his loving spirit, and his sense of humor – but also at his job, at our church, and in our community. Although he had little formal education, he was, nonetheless, a wise man, and one who realized the value of relationships in both business and life. He was warm, friendly, out-going – a person who sincerely cared about people. He could – and would – talk to anyone, and people liked him, because he was genuinely interested in every person he met.

My dad never had much money, but he counted among his friends the rich and the powerful, and they were honored to have him as a friend. His friends also included the poor and the downtrodden. They knew that they could count on Chuck to help them pay an overdue bill or provide a little grocery money to cover them until payday. He often denied himself in order to help someone in need or to contribute to a worthy cause.

My mother would frequently say, "I'm a rich woman." And she was, because she had a husband who adored her, a husband who was gentle and patient, who never raised his voice to her, who danced her around the kitchen, who showered her with love and affection and called her "Sweet." Riches aren't always found in bank accounts.

And I, too, was rich, because I was fortunate enough to have a daddy who loved me unconditionally and who taught me that cheerfulness is a choice and that attitude is everything.

When it comes to my positive upbringing, I want to keep in mind what I like to call "the breadcrumb" factor. In the fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel, the children dropped breadcrumbs as they walked through the forest so that they could remember where they came from. I, too, want to remember where I came from and to honor my parents by letting their lives shine through me.

My dad was truly a living example of a "positive presence," one of those people who – by just being himself – made wherever he was a little better and a little brighter. He made life count and made every day a great one.

Excerpt from Make Life Count! 50 Ways to Great Days Copyright, 2000.

Other Sample Chapter

Chapter 1: Focus

Add to Cart            Tax-Exempt: Add to Cart