# great men you know - what's great about them



## NobodySpecial (Nov 22, 2013)

I'll start with my father. He was a great man. Charity and kindness were his assets. People in need were taken into our home. When the local super right wing newspaper reported on an event that involved a black man, he spoke up about the rabidly racist reporting, earning himself death threats from the local KKK and other hate groups. He was a perfect role model of husband. Caring, loving, respectful. It looked, at least from the outside, as a partnership. Never a battle. That is what my mother describes as well. As a father, he was patient, kind and never instilled fear. Good behavior was a natural consequence of his focus on character and integrity. He never cared what we were, what we wanted as long as we were the best people we could be. He treated boys and girls alike. Boys scrubbed toilets and cooked. Girls chopped wood and went fishing. When his son wanted to go into music, great! When his girl wanted to go into the military, well less great because of the risk, but sex was irrelevant. (She never did go into the military mush to his relief.)

The next great man I will mention is my husband. He is a lot like my father. You will see him quietly hand a sandwich to a homeless man on the street. You will see him chaperone a weekend trip so the disabled boy can go since his disabled Mom cannot take him. He is also a terrific model of husband. He fights fair, to solve, not to win. He seeks to understand *me* not to win or to get. You would never ever ever hear him say how do I get my wife to do x,y,z. You would hear him say, how do I make you feel safe, cared for and loved? (Which is why this wife will bend over backward to ensure he gets whatever his x,y and z are, incidentally.) As a father, he is terrific. Engaged and loving. He also treats boy and girl the same, teaching both to cook, do laundry as well as mow, chop, shoot and fish. He is fun, works hard.

There are many others I could mention. My brothers. Many of my friends.

What do the great men in your life look like?


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## Jellybeans (Mar 8, 2011)

They are intelligent, well-read, funny, observational, kind, thoughtful, patient and creative.

Every man is different. These are some of the characteristics that make up the great men I have known in my life are like.


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## NobodySpecial (Nov 22, 2013)

^^ I agree with you. BUT intelligence is not a requirement for greatness in my book compared to character. There is a guy in my town that I consider to be a great man. He is ... what do you call a mentally retarded grown man who probably was never Dxed with a "learning disability"? Anyway, he is the first person to help someone out of the store with their groceries, or volunteer for local charity events.


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

Dh is compassionate with women and children. He does not blame them for their vulnerabilities. He tries to use his power to help them.


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## NobodySpecial (Nov 22, 2013)

jld said:


> Dh is compassionate with women and children. He does not blame them for their vulnerabilities. He tries to use his power to help them.


I am curious. Help them with what?


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

NobodySpecial said:


> I am curious. Help them with what?


My sister got pregnant out of wedlock. Dh agreed to lend her rent money, knowing we might never get it back. He held her baby when he knew she was tired. We spent many Saturdays watching her son so she could work. No thought of payment or gratitude. Just compassion.


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## Faithful Wife (Oct 31, 2012)

I'm not sure my husband could be considered a great man outside of our family, but in our family, he is a great husband, father, and mentor. To the rest of the world he is just a regular guy. To us, he's our Superman.


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## NobodySpecial (Nov 22, 2013)

Faithful Wife said:


> I'm not sure my husband could be considered a great man outside of our family, but in our family, he is a great husband, father, and mentor. To the rest of the world he is just a regular guy. To us, he's our Superman.


Do share. Why?


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## SimplyAmorous (Nov 25, 2009)

My H is just a FAMILY man... he would do anything for his kids, he is a giver.. and he enjoys GIVING.. he never complains.. but as far as doing community service.. taking strangers into our home.. we are not this wonderful ...and he'd not be opening doors for that..

Now if you WORK with him...You love him, he does his job..and does it well, you can always count on him... he is easy to talk to , he doesn't pi** people off and he can handle the idiots who get out of hand... In reality, I think he brings calm to his work place as a peacemaker.. it's kinda funny the dynamics that go on there..

But yeah... just more of a regular guy I guess...but that works for me..


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## nuclearnightmare (May 15, 2013)

OK that's nice but look....are these guys "alphas" or are you ladies asking us to worship different varietes of male weakness? My concern grows with every post..........


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

Why is it male weakness, nn?


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## nuclearnightmare (May 15, 2013)

jld said:


> Why is it male weakness, nn?


I have good news and bad news jld. Good news is that my post above is steeped in sarcasm. I don't actually believe these are weaknesses. The bad news is that I therefore posted something deliberatatey provocative, which is against the rules. So I could be banned. Would you intercede for me if it comes to that?


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

I don't think my intercession would have any impact, nn. But I would put in a good word for you.


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## DanaS (May 28, 2014)

I would most definitely say my husband. He is by far the greatest, most sincere and kind loving man I have ever known. In all the time we have been together I have never heard him say anything bad about someone. He is also VERY generous. He did one thing in particular that cemented to me how good of a man he was.

We had only been dating 3 months and he took me to a nice restaurant. A group of 5 came in, were very rude and demanding to the waitress and unbeknownst to me at the time when they left they didn't even leave a tip! He saw it though and said "Wow, they didn't even leave a tip, I feel bad for her" then he got up, and put a $20 he had on the table!  

Another time just recently we were doing some grocery shopping and as we were putting the groceries in my car he noticed a really old woman (probably 80s) struggling, he said "Just a sec" and he went and helped put them in the trunk for her. 

He may be 28 but I have been out with plenty men my age that were total cheap skates or rude so age isn't always a factor how someone will act.

He's my hero!


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

He is a hero, Dana.


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## scatty (Mar 15, 2013)

Yes, when looking for a great man, look for how he treats waiters, customer service representatives, salesman and him mother/sisters (unless they were abusive.)

My man is loyal, trustworthy, reliable, and says what he does and does what he says. He will fix my moms water heater, stop for a stranded motarist (although I told him the danger, he weighs the risk and stops anyway.) 

He never lies, unless it's to spare someones feelings, takes care of things I forget to do (OOOPS) Goes to all kids appointments, plays with kids despite he is disabled, watches my crap tv shows, talks whenever I need\want to, lets it go when I am a total bi tch (as I do on the rare occasion he is an ass.)

He cooks, appreciates my cleaning and child raising skills and lets me know constantly.

I feel like I got SO lucky. He is strong where I am weak and vice-versa.


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## jld (Dec 1, 2013)

Another great story, scatty. Thanks for sharing.


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

I know a few great men, one of them being my uncle. He is a great example of a husband and overall great man. He is a giver and is always willing to help. He dotes on his wife and is chivalrous, opening doors, walking on the street side, and so on. He volunteers his time at the local hospital, too. 

I always wanted a marriage like my uncle's. Hoping to one day get there.


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## chillymorn (Aug 11, 2010)

great men are Kind and not judgemental. they teach by example with just enough hints along the way,they let their child fail when apropiate, they show love and affection they stand there groung when they know their right, they protect their family by making wise finanical decisions. and will even use force to protect them if nessaccery. they encourage not discourage.


and they are humble doing this. But confident.


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## SurpriseMyself (Nov 14, 2009)

I'm thinking of one man who I can safely say was the only crush I ever had as an adult. He was enthusiastic, energetic, had a big smile, was strong physically and emotionally, was confident, a great father, and just lit up a room when he walked in. He's the only man I've ever met like that and I still think of him.


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## Miss Taken (Aug 18, 2012)

My FIL is a great man. He came from a poor country, was born in a hut with a dirt floor back in the late 40's. He is now a self-made millionaire. He has supported family back home as well as those in Canada. He "rescued" a family friend (she was actually just a tenant of his at one point) from an abusive relationship by giving her a job for twenty years until she died. 

Many of his tenants (he made a large part of his money in real-estate) are those that our society has failed - the infirm, the disabled, the aged. He takes care of them - going above and beyond his duties as a landlord and even cooks for some of them to make sure that they eat every day. He also does the same for his mother - giving her a free place to live, providing her with a live-in nurse and making sure she is comfortable and taken care of. 

Nearly every time I see him, he has laughed so hard that tears come out of his eyes. He loves life and loves people, he's never quick to anger and doesn't hold grudges. He loves his grandchildren with all of his heart. When I separated from my spouse, he is the only one of my in-laws that had my back. He kept coming over with words of encouragement and dinner allowed me to live in our house (we rent from him) and pay below market rent so the kids and I would be okay. 

He is hard-working, loving, light-hearted despite all he's been through in his life (was severely beaten/whipped as a child) protective and loyal. 

He is a good man.


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