A Thousand Little Ways

Reflections on my father on my second Father's Day without him.  We miss you, Dad!  In the following statements, though the thoughts are of my Dad, I can't remove my mother from the truths in each one.  They were always together.

How did my father love me ---in a thousand little ways:

~ in the way he would take me on his lap when it was time to say "good night"
~ his big bear hug when returning from work each evening.
~ he let me help him rake or carry firewood, even when I was really too small to do much
~ in his acceptance of my girlfriends, who loved him like their own dad
~ tirelessly taking me to friends' or the skating rink--18 miles away- only to come back down a few
      hours later to bring me home again
~ his cinnamon candies and BeechNut gum supply was always open
~ the pleasure he had in meeting my soul-mate, Syd, before Dad knew he was just that
~ after all the months of planning our wedding, yet Dad informed me that "it's still not too late to back
     out", just before we walked through the back doors and down the aisle; when most fathers would
     say, "don't you dare!"
~ he so received my husband that often people could not remember whether I was Dad's daughter
     or Syd was his son
~ Dad always wanted to meet our close friends and would spend much time with them often
~ the way I would find a five or ten dollar bill stuck under the fruit bowl or hidden near the bathroom
     sink
~ he was always ready to help out with a project; whether fixing a broken table leg or helping put up
     the walls of our cabin
~ driving into the yard for a visit on a day you really needed him
~ meeting him unexpectedly downtown and sharing a bite to eat

I saw a white Park Avenue driving towards me a few weeks ago and had to refrain from waving.  "Dad,
I have a hard time knowing it's not you (and Mom), there on the road.  I can't wait to see you again in Heaven."

Though Dad didn't like his picture taken, we have some wonderful ones of him; Such a good sport, he was actually clowning around in this shot.