Leadership Lessons: A Father’s Legacy Written By: Cleophus (Cleo) Franklin Jr. “My father did not tell me how to live; he lived and let me watch him do it.” - Clarence B. Kelland The lessons I learned from my hard-working Korean War veteran father still resonate within me, help to guide me daily, and live on through my leadership books (Coffee with Cleo & Lessons from our Mothers and Fathers), as I honor his legacy and am proud to share it with those who may be inspired by it. During my youth and especially as a teenager, I carried an unabashed and unapologetic attitude toward my parents that was filled with an “I know it all” perspective. It was also underscored with an unwavering “My parents don’t know jacks—!” mentality, as this is exactly how I would describe my feelings toward my parents growing up! I understand this is very common and part of almost every teenager’s suite of “rebellion tools” in their rite of passage, as teenagers at this stage in life are truly short on sense but long on attitude. All parents have to deal with this youthful insurgence and ignorance, and we thank God for their persistence, for their perseverance, and sometimes for simply ignoring those teenage rants. Like most parents, my mother and father too were built in this mode. They were wise and often shared their unsolicited wisdom with me, which I did not fully appreciate as a youngster. I describe this as the ever-present “youth and elder gap” that exists, which is why I appreciate how parents play the long game and persist in finding interesting (and often unappreciated) ways to share their insightful lessons with their children, despite their children’s resistance. The beauty of this paradox is that if you are blessed to live long enough, you begin to see the wisdom and wise lessons that your folks passed along to you. These lessons resonate and make sense over time, which is why I am glad my parents did not let my youthful insolence stop them from disseminating their sage counsel and advice, as they knew I would need it along the road of life. I have found that the advice 23 “ Straight Talk ”
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