A Story Inspired by Real People

Something that I’ve learned about life is that it truly is short. You have to embrace the ones that are dear to you while you have the time, and for each of the men that I have been honored to call my fathers, the memories that we have inspired my children’s literacy brand, which started with  an adorable, rhyming picture book, titled, Little Mr. Fix It Assists With The To-Do List.

It’s been a while since I shared the personal side of how this brand came into being. Know that it was inspired by real people. Four of them, to be exact.

My Biological Father, Pete

For me, Father’s Day is often bittersweet. My biological father, the man who raised me, is someone whose face I have and whose bloodline belongs to me, but it wasn’t until the last 9 years of his life that we really built a solid relationship. He often worked as a painter when I was a kid, and hustled any way that he could to get by.

When he passed in December of 2015, I was 35 years old going through every major transition you could imagine. Yet, when he left this earth, I was left with no unanswered questions and an arsenal of his journals to explain more of the man that I simply called Pete. The element of my memories with him that was pulled into the mix was in a jigsaw puzzle titled Painting the Wall With Dad.

My Grandfather, Ed

Someone else I have the great pleasure of calling dad was my grandfather. Growing up, he was ever-present in all of the ways that counted, and we were very, very close. When my mother relocated from Cleveland, Ohio to Atlanta, Georgia to step fully into her role as grandma, my grandfather was happy to accompany her and to be the only great-grandfather my son would ever know.

The 93 years that he was blessed with were truly a story that deserves a volume of books, starting with his early life growing up in Pennsylvania, to enlisting in the Navy to fight in World War II aboard the USS New Orleans as one of the first Black sea men in the military, to being voted Neighbor of the Year by our beloved community on Svec Ave. Beyond this, he was the subject of my very first published book in 1987, titled, “My Grandfather,” and referred to in an essay that I wrote when I was 16 years old as “The real Mr. Fix It of our house.”   

Though he passed in 2019, just one year before I even got the idea to write the book and build a brand around it, I know that my grandfather is aware of the strides that have been made in his honor. His likeness and image show up as the hardware store owner that greets the two main characters as they venture out on Saturday morning to pick up supplies for their home improvement projects. This is an ode to how I often accompanied him when I was a kid on trips to Shaker Hardware, our local hardware store, and how much I looked forward to observing him while seated on an upside-down bucket in the garage when he was building something amazing.

If you’re fortunate to have a father or fathers that have enriched your life, I pray that you have good memories of yours as I do mine.

My Step-Father, Ron

Next, there’s the other man that raised me, my step-father. Though we share no common genetic markers, he is my father in every way that matters. This is who taught me how to drive, came to my little league games, escorted me in the cotillion during Senior Year in high school. This is who knew all the dances, blasted the record player when his closest friends paid visits on random weeknights and holidays, and taught me the value of knowing when to speak and when to keep quiet.

My step-father, who I call Pop, made silly jokes to keep the mood light in a household that wasn’t rich, but wasn’t poor, either, and advised me in matters of friendship when the drama needed sorting out. He established my appreciation for good music from all genres, and is why I can love Phil Collins at the same time that I love Digital Underground. From the time I was 7 until the time I was 16, I was like this man’s shadow and often recruited him for the parental car service that most dads get called for the moment they finally get a moment to sit still after a long day’s work. After that, I was lucky if he’d let me borrow his car, so to keep receiving the privilege of wheel’n’ his 1996 Geo Prism, I was thoughtful enough to say 'thank you' each time by replacing the tank with $5.00 worth of gas that I burned whenever he told me to just make sure he could get to work in the morning. Because yes, back in 1996, that would put you on a quarter tank, believe it or not.

Thankfully, he is still able to answer my phone calls and texts, though at 72 years old, I’m not sure how much time he may have left. He’s been immortalized, though, in the story because his job as a maintenance man is what inspired the blue collar swag of the father in my stories, Mr. Jefferson.

All of this to say that it’s so important to make time for dad no matter what age you are. Through self-publishing, I was given the freedom to bring my stories to life exactly as I envision them and to reflect the reality that I grew up with and still see in my own daily life.

Which brings us to the fourth father in my life – the one that I co-parent with.

My Son’s Father, LaVelle

I decided to add a series of jigsaw puzzles to the Little Mr. Fix It line-up because they tell a story that I can relate to first hand, and so can my son. When my son’s dad was asked to custom-build the bookshelf that holds my inventory of children’s books, LaVelle was under heavy observation by our then 4-year old child. He wanted so badly to help, and whether picking up tools and handing them to his dad or singing songs about Thomas The Train, our son was given the space  to assist on a level that he could handle. This led to the little guy helping to paint the shelves, use the leveler to point out when something was not even, and add all manner of cuteness in the process.

You can see how it all came together here. 

Their relationship is a large part of why I could confidently build a brand around the book. It’s art imitating life at its finest, so I hope you see some part of yourself in the characters that were literally inspired by real people.

Memories That Last A Lifetime

It’s memories caught in stories that will last a lifetime. And memories like these that are worth immortalizing, which is why I framed this one, Completing The Bookshelf With Dad. And I won’t even act like I can take credit for assembling this 200-piece labor of love. It was patiently, meticulously finished by my son and his dad. Fortunately, my son has a dad who’s also quite a Mr. Fix It in his own right…funny how that worked out, huh?  

Add our jigsaw puzzles to your collection and begin framing wall art in your home to reflect on your own memories with your father or if you're like me, fathers.