The last day of March can be a difficult time for my family. I usually find myself blue and feeling unexplained sadness a few weeks into March, when suddenly it hits me that this is the time of year that our dad, or 'Pop's' to his beloved 3 girls, lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. There are not many days when thoughts of my dad do not cross my mind. I think of how much fun he would be having with all of his grand kids, finally, 4 little grandsons to putter around in the garage, and one little granddaughter to brighten the world. My kids sadly do not have an active Grandfather in their lives, they miss out on simple things that Grandpa time provides. Quiet learning of the things that truly count, family, time, and creating fun memories.
I thought of pops a lot this week, how many hours he tried to explain the mystery of math to me, and how he would of laughed at how Wes was now tackling that frustrating role. I have one of his white V-neck tee-shirts hanging in the front of my closet, and I remember how much my sisters and I loved swiping those shirts for our fantastic 80's fashions, much to his frustration. Really, he had GIRLS after all, why were they stealing HIS clothes!
When I met Westley I knew immediately that my parents would adore him, particularly my dad. I thought that Wes and my dad would share their love of all things nerdy, computers, old cars, and science fiction. I remember being a little angry with Westley early in our relationship and he looked at me with all seriousness and told me, "I am going home to YOUR parents" obviously the argument turned into laughter, but that is how it was, my parents showed Westley that families could love each other and actually WANT to spent time together, something he missed out on. An important quiet lesson.
When Westley and I married my dad gave us our final gift, a beautiful wooden trunk, that he built just for us. Inscribed on a little brass plaque that tells all that it was made with love, by 'POP's'.
Not to mention a family so endearing that a husband would change his name to keep the father-in-law's name from going away.
Posted by: jered | March 31, 2009 at 11:07 AM
Lots of sweetness here - I would have stolen those white tee shirts too!
Posted by: scalder | March 31, 2009 at 11:12 AM
How beautifully written....love the picture...how many hours Pops sanded that wood so it would be perfect...just like everything he did! He one wish he had in his final days was to live to be a grandpa....how happy he would be of all his little ones....
Posted by: mom | April 01, 2009 at 12:51 PM