It was just he and I at the lake. Standard operation. He backs the trailer in and I drive the boat off. I was 20 and he thought it was well part of my maturation to know how to pull a boat trailer. He suggested I take over. "Just swing wide," he said.

I went wide alright. So wide, in fact, that I somehow clipped the side of a dumpster with the passenger side of the trailer and drug it 8 feet.

It caused damage. It cost money to repair. It took maneuvering to get the boat back on the trailer. And as I apologized to my dad, he told me I was better prepared than before. His compassion for my imperfections trickled into every experience we had. He isn't hasty and quick to blame like men are want to be. He sees me as extremely capable and is surprised anytime I failed.