a Tribute to my Daddy

My daddy
at Christmas time a few years ago

Yesterday, Friday 7 April, we said our final "good-byes' to our dad/grandpa.  This "celebration of Life" service was held in the church I grew up in, and my dad's church for a little over 60 years!

I am the oldest of 3 younger sisters (Joy, Hope, Jill).  All of us are married except Joy and all of us are moms except for Hope.  We were blessed to have Christian parents.  They are both reunited with Jesus now.

Here is the tribute I wrote to share with the congregation:

Who was Dick Mosseau?? 

A son, brother, cousin.  An uncle, nephew, brother-in-law.

A husband, son-in-law, father-in-law, friend, neighbor, factory worker, church goer, fellow Christian.

A grandfather.  And a father.

But most of all......our daddy.

Dad was a wise, patient, and caring man.  He was gentle in his touch and with his words.

He was strong in the Lord, and always exuded a quiet confidence in his faith.

One of my earliest memories from elementary school was opening my eyes in the morning, around 6:30 a.m., and seeing him sitting in his little office area across from my bedroom on German Street.  He would sit at his desk reading the Bible and praying before leaving for work.

As I grew into a young adult and we moved to Mohawk, he would often read his Bible at the breakfast table.  He is the one who demonstrated for me the importance of not just consuming coffee in the morning but of drinking in the Word of God.

In the Grandfather's Memories Journal that he wrote for my daughters, he stated: "An important lesson that I hope all my children and grandchildren learn is that God will always take care of them and be with them as long as they keep their faith and trust in Him."  He was very much a dad who wanted all of us to follow Christ.  He came to Christ as a young adult and ever since that time, his love for his Savior was evident.

His favorite Scripture was John 3:16 and I remember one of the first things he asked me when I told him that Dave and I were engaged was "Does he have a job?? and does he love Jesus?"  I was happy to be able to tell him Yes to both.

Dad always told me that my husband should also be a friend.  He said he had three friends:  Jesus Christ, my mother, and his best friend Dick Only.  He wrote in the journal: "Always be there for one another, doing things together, and sticking up for each other."

When I was a little girl, I often thought of Dad as my hero.  He could fix anything and knew so much about the Adirondacks and the woods which I loved.

He is the person I looked up to in my growing up years and one of my favorite memories of Dad was when we would be up at our summer camp in Northville.  I think I got my love for bonfires and hikes from Daddy...we would take walks in the woods, he created trails for us to follow and I would sit by him on the ground in front of our fire pit.

He also taught me the importance of obeying God.  This first hit home when I was about 12 years old.  My 2nd cousin MaryJo and I were out in the far back of our camp property picking blackberries.  Dad had always told us kids to never cross the creek!  Well, being almost a teen, of course I didn't think this rule applied to me...so there MaryJo and I went wading across the creek to get to the blackberry bushes on the other side so we could fill those pails.  Around the bush we heard a growl and sure enough a bear was standing upright, in our path.  We took off running and splashed back across that creek with me losing a sneaker in the process.

Later that evening, Dad came to the porch with my wet sneaker in hand and asked if I had been in the creek.  Of course I told him what happened and he said "it's a good thing that bear didn't chase you.  Always obey!"  He didn't get angry or impatient with me.  He showed me mercy and grace which is really an earthly picture of what our Heavenly Father is like...merciful and abounding in grace.  Just like I needed to obey my daddy, we need to follow God's leading.  Dad did a great job in modeling the character of God the Father for us.

Dad wrote about that in his journal too by saying "God can be a friend when we learn to trust in Him for everything and let Him be in control."  How I treasure those words of my dad as they point me to the Father who is all knowing.

Dad wanted my daughters to know that he was proud of them and wrote that if they just trusted in the Lord, He would lead them.

Dad trusted in the Lord...I am so thankful I got to have him as an earthly father pointing me to Christ.  I will never forget our talks, our walks, his smile or his singing.  He had said once that if he could have anything in the world, it would be for all of his relatives and friends to come to know Christ and to be ready to meet Him when they die or when Christ returns.

My daddy represented Jesus well.  He was a walking testimony of the two greatest commandments:  "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" and "love your neighbor as yourself".  He did that.....and is living eternally..we can take great comfort in that.

Victor Hugo, the famous French writer wrote in his book Les Miserables, "to love another person is to see the face of God"....I could see the face of God in my daddy's love and now He is seeing God face to face.

 

Although I won't see him on this earth ever again, I look forward to seeing him in heaven and until then I hope and pray I can help to carry on the legacy he leaves behind.