I remember my fifteenth birthday. My dad had known that I really wanted to learn how to drive. To my mother’s shagrin, dad took me into the garage and said, ‘OK son, today’s the day. You and me; we’re gonna take the car out for your first spin.’ The biggest smile you have ever seen lit up my young face and I said, ‘Fantastic Dad! THANKS!!’ Memories like this often flood my mind when I think about my dad.He’s gone now. He died last year.Today I was looking at a ring he gave me before he died and I realized the great value it has. It is my most valuable possession because of the great sentimental value it has, because it is a family heirloom and because it is probably the most costly thing I own.

The first reason I value the ring is because it has great sentimental value. My dad and I were very close. He was like a friend to me. Lots of people have role models and heroes. For me, my dad was both. Dad always took the “high road.” He taught me the values of honesty, responsibility and loyalty. He not only taught these things but lived them.I saw how he cared about mom and treated her with respect, how he treated people he worked with, how he was honest, even if he didn’t come out ahead. When he died last year of cancer, it was a great blow for me. I lost someone I loved and looked to very dearly. Now, I am so glad to have this ring. He gave it to me before he died. Everytime I look at it, I am reminded of the love he had for me and I had for him.

The second reason I value this ring is because it is a family heirloom. Only the other day, as I was looking at it, did I realize it was an heirloom. I had forgotten, but my grandfather gave it to dad, the day dad and mom got married. Dad had told me this when he gave it to me. Dad gave it to me about a month before he died. At that time, he told me the story of how grandfather had given