Do you allow the cream to rise to the top?

I've always had a problem accepting a compliment as a compliment. It's in part due to my childhood which was for the most part unremarkable but which, on occasion seemed to dip into a rather hollow pit. These pits were usually during periods of time when my mother, whom I firmly believe suffered from Bi-Polar, would rage against me for something I had failed to accomplish to her standards. As a perfectionist, it was rare that my child-like attempts would ever reach the level of acceptance that she often demanded and expected from others. It was often difficult  to understand what my mother truly expected from me. More often than not, I failed to meet let alone exceed her expectations and this would more often than not lead to criticism rather than compliments.

On the other side of the coin was my father who was never at a loss for words when it came to praising a person's attempts no matter how weak or how poorly completed. I remember clearly the day that he completed work on a vehicle that he was planning to sell. I had just gotten my learners permit and was thrilled when he asked me to move the car from one spot in the driveway to another. (My father had incredible belief and trust in his children, even if it meant more work for him!)  My error came when I paid attention to a friend who, to be fair, sincerely believed she was helping to  guide me as I backed the car up. The only problem was that she hadn't taken into consideration the fact that there was a big wooden lawn chair between the car and the garage!  Of course, neither had I.  I backed right into the chair and solidly squashed it against the side of the car that my father had carefully fixed, painted and polished and up against the garage wall.

As he came out to survey the damage  I fully expected my father to send me to my room without any outside ventures for quite some time. Instead, he turned to me, his 6 foot 5inch frame towering over me and his gentle voice falling softly on my ears and said, "Well, it's a lot less damage than I thought it would be. Did you happen to learn anything from this?" To which I quickly responded, "I learned to look myself before I move a car!"

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