Happy Celestial Birthday, Dad!
It’s hard for me to believe my dad has been gone for 18 years… Today would have been his 105th birthday. I miss him every minute of every day, and yes, I still talk to him despite his having passed beyond this earthly veil. He was my go-to for down-to-earth, sensible advice that I almost always followed. He taught me anything I wanted to learn if he knew it; otherwise, we’d look it up together. Keep in mind, this was way before computers, Google, and ChatCPT- it took some time and effort to find answers back then!
What sort of things did I learn from him? To be kind to everyone. To be polite. To read and learn throughout my lifetime, not just in school. How to change from studded snow tires to regular tires when the snow and ice were gone. How to change the oil and check fluids in my car. How to play Euchre and Sheepshead card games. How to grow and prune roses and perennials in the flower garden (peonies were always my favorites). Basic plumbing- sweating copper pipe joints. Table manners, like the best way to get the last soup in a bowl without getting any on you or the tablecloth. Believing that I could do anything I learned and worked hard at.
Dad was raised during the depression. His mom could make a meal from a little bit of just about anything. His dad, brother & he would hunt for meat if my granddad hadn’t gotten beef or pork in trade for his many skills, like carpentry, cabinet making, machine work. They lived a frugal life, right up until the end. “Store-boughten cookies” were a big treat in his family, despite his mom baking the best cookies of all time! Grandma gardened, canned, cooked and baked from scratch, and she taught me the same…
Dad was a devoted husband and father, as well as a talented machinist and manufacturing and processing engineer. He spent most of his working life helping various electric motor manufacturing companies plan for, help locate equipment, design building specifications to support the equipment, monitor the construction expansion, set up equipment and train the leads. We moved a LOT when I was growing up, every 2-4 years mostly, all over the midwest. I joked that we were “migrant manufacturers” and not military brats when asked why we moved so much.
Dad worked until he was 71 and decided to retire when “The weekend wasn’t long enough anymore. I was still tired on Monday.” They picked Muray, KY as their retirement location- 4 easy seasons with not too much snow, a good hospital and doctors, a college town (University of Kentucky at Murray) so there was decent shopping, and fishing at the Land Between the Lakes.
Dad and Mom eventually moved in with us at our home in Aguanga, California, and we had a great time for their last years. I got to cook for a crowd again (Dad & Willie loved leftovers). I got gardening advice from Dad. I was able to care for them at home with Hospice. What an honor to be able to give back to them for putting up with my teenage shenanigans! Seriously, I am so happy I got to spend their last days together. I tried to find a photo of Dad’s last birthday cake, but didn’t have any luck. Too many photos in boxes…
Treasure your loved ones while they’re living, friends, you have no idea how much you’ll miss them when they’re gone.
