When you’re young, you think your dad is Superman. Then you grow up, and you realize he’s just a regular guy who wears a cape.

My father has always been wonderful, I have seen him work hard to provide a steady ground for my life and future. He has endured multiple challenges throughout life and handled each of them with a generous smile and a big heart.

Here are the 5 invaluable life lessons I learned from my Father

1. Forgive and move on – People will wrong you, the world will be unfair, mistakes will be made. The key to a calm life is not revenge or regret, it is Forgiveness. People wronged him more than a fair share, but I learned from him that letting them house up in your brain is only going to harm you. Therefore, the best remedy for this pain is to learn your lesson, forgive others, and yourself.

It takes a brave heart to love, hate is for the weak ones.

Sanjay A. (my dad)

2. Love with an open heart – He taught me that words are important, but so are actions. My parents show love using both. He taught me that you can’t be lazy in love because it is a living organism that needs to be nurtured with respect, trust, and kindness to bloom into a happy life.

My father taught me how to believe in myself and to never give up.

3. Perseverance – He saw things broken/taken from him that he built with all his effort and time. Without losing his cool, he patiently picked up the pieces rebuilding it from the beginning. He taught me never to give up on your goals, to stay calm without uttering a word about the loss, and to continue to work towards them with perseverance.

Contentment is natural wealth, luxury is artificial poverty.

Socrates

4. Money doesn’t determine your happiness – True wealth is not defined by the funds in your bank account. He moves through life’s good times and bad times with grace. He taught me to accept and face both situations with similar treatment. When we learn to be content with no matter how little or more we have we will always find happiness.

When my father didn’t have my hand, he had my back.

Linda Poindexter

5. Dream Big and break the norms – My father always pushed me to dream bigger, he says that no-one is too weak to create an impact in the world. He taught me never to see gender, race, color, age because these things should not define our actions or limit us from making this world a better place. By implementing your talent for something bigger than yourself, you can break the norms and stand for what is significant.

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.

C.S. Lewis