Father's Day!

Today, June 19th, 2011, is Father's Day. Luckily, the Bruins won the Stanley Cup a few days ago, so gifts for my husband should be easy. My dad is a little tougher to buy for. He is a huge fan of Boston sports, but of the four teams we root for, the Bruins are probably the team he's least interested in. Also, my dad is notoriously difficult to buy for.

I would love to bake my dad some chocolate chip cookies, with walnuts, today. He loves chocolate chip cookies with nuts and I must say I do bake a pretty mean CCC. When trying to make pancakes for breakfast yesterday I noticed he have no eggs, so a quick trip to the grocery store for eggs (and if history is a good indicator, $175 worth of other groceries) is in order.

I know stuff about my dad. But he's a hard guy to describe. He grew up in Revere, and from all accounts, he was always a very bright, superior student. I know he used to read encyclopedias for fun, and went to junk yards to harvest scraps for the stereos and electronics that he used to build for fun. My sister and my mom are the only two people who could ever remember the first "computer" that he built and we used to play on - it was a weird blue flat thing with a keypad. I think we played a pong-like game on it, but I'm not sure.

My dad has terrible handwriting. He used to pay me to type some of his work, because as bad as his writing is, his typing is worse. Not only could I not make out paragraphs of his writing, he often couldn't make out his writing either. And because he was often having me type extremely scientific documents, I couldn't use any context clues.

My father doesn't get mad very often, and he almost never cries. I heard him swear when he found out his dad died. I'm sure he cried at each of his parent's funerals, but I don't remember seeing him cry. He cried when our dogs died. He actually lost control and yelled at my mom and cried when their last dog died. That is so out of character for my mild-mannered dad; neither my sister nor I will ever forget that.

My dad has a very dry, very funny sense of humor. I'm not sure my mom would always agree with that; but my father cracks us up. My kids and husband find him funny too. He laughs easily, and can laugh at himself. And while he chuckles readily at jokes, he has a great honest laugh - a deep belly laugh that is a great reward for a joke told.

My father once told me that he needs time to get used to the idea of parting with his money. That may be true, but his generousity to me and my family is proof that he's quite willing to part with his hard-earned money. I wouldn't have a house, van, or many other things if my dad wasn't so willing to help. He often pays for my graduate classes and lets me keep the reimbursement check. He helps me pay for my children's private day-school education. We're always a little behind financially; without my dad I can't imagine how we'd have gotten by.

My dad is a fabulous grandfather. He loves his four grandkids with all of his heart and he enjoys spending time with them. He and my mom come to sports games, school events, family outings, etc. All four of his grandkids remind me of my dad in different ways. He takes an interest in their passions and enjoys sharing his interests with them.

My father loves to do stuff. He loves to walk; he walks around the lake in Wakefield, he walks in his neighborhood, he takes long walks when he goes on vacation. He has been riding his bike with my husband and my kids and enjoys that as well. My dad is in great shape- when he and my mom took me to Hawaii we went hiking on Diamondhead. Most people were huffing and puffing (well, I was and I think others were too) and my dad was walking upright, looking around with interest, greeting everyone we passed and pointing out interesting geographical oddities. He was proudly wearing his Red Sox-a-saurus T-shirt and didn't miss a chance to talk to a stranger about Boston or his beloved Sox. I was grateful every time he stopped, and I nodded and gasped for breath at the strangers he chatted up.

I'm pretty sure my dad was hoping I'd go into computers or some high tech field. But as long as I can remember, he always told me what a great field education was, and encouraged me to become a teacher. My dad taught me the monkey theory of business and raised me to love Judaism. Although he lost his parents when he was young and doesn't have a relationship with his sister he has always demonstrated his belief that family is the most important structure there is, and that family comes first.

There are certain things that always remind me of my father - a Polaroid camera/picture/logo. Any song by the Pointer Sisters or Rod Stewart. Some song by Ringo Starr about having a whole lot of money. The Red Sox, Peanuts characters, and chocolate chip cookies. All of these things remind me of a quiet, generous man who always took care of our family. A person who taught me to love and protect animals, a man who loves to walk and be outside. They remind me of the security that comes from having a father who will almost say yes to a trip to Canobie Lake, an afternoon picking apples, a request for financial assistance and a walk around the Lake.

Love you Dad, happy father's day!