JANE'S DOMAIN: Dates and Memories

Today I’m thinking about all the men in my life who have demonstrated what it is to be a good father. Or father figure. Like, for instance, my dad, father-in-law, guy friends, granddads, stepdads, pet dads, and even women who have had to be both mom and dad at times. I have seen so many wonderful examples, and I’m grateful.

I know there are a lot of us who are missing our dads today. May we find comfort and peace and remember all those years that we were lucky enough to have had them in our lives.

Today would have been my father-in-law’s 95^th birthday. We usually celebrated both his birthday and Father’s Day together even though the two occasions were off by a few days. But sometimes – like today – both events happened simultaneously. So I hope you are being celebrated today, Morris. We're thinking of you here.

And, of course, I’m missing my Vince and wishing him a happy heavenly Father’s Day. I hope his kids think of him today and miss him. I know he loved being their dad.

June is a month filled with significant dates and memories of my own dad. I’m missing him today on Father’s Day. I’ll be thinking of him on the 25^th as the day he passed in 2016. And then on the 28^th when he and mom would have celebrated their 73^rd wedding anniversary. And then a few weeks later on July 16^th, when he would have celebrated his 99^th birthday. (I think my calculator was working correctly.)

Even though he’s not here for me to call and wish him a happy day – I think of him daily. And I thank him for everything he did for me and the example he set for me and my siblings - and all who knew and loved him.

The top photo is a blurry picture of my dad and me that I discovered in my parents’ photo collection. Whenever I’d visit them at their cottage on Cape Cod for more than a quick weekend, Dad and I (and any other siblings who were there) went deep sea fishing out of Plymouth, MA.

That day we, um, clearly did not have a whole lot of luck. Dad’s mantra of “here, fishy, fishy!” apparently didn’t work, but hearing him say it always made me smile.

Anyway, he must have decided that the one puny fish we did catch (and, truthfully, I’m guessing he caught it rather than me since he was the actual skilled fisherman) could still serve as dinner for the two of them. I, on the other hand, was probably offered a hot dog or whatever leftover was hanging around in the fridge as I’m not fond of seafood. So he had the mate on the boat fillet the fish. Even though it's a little hard to see, the fish we brought home was in the small sandwich-sized baggie that we’re holding.

I love the wry look on Dad’s face as he’s showing off our “big” catch. It made me laugh then and it still makes me laugh now. Too bad mom wasn’t the best photographer in the world and it’s so blurry. But that’s okay – I still love the memory!

As I was looking for the photo under “fishing” I came across lots of photos of us fishing with dad. And lots of photos of dad fishing. They bring up so many happy memories of days gone by.

And those are the best memories.

Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there. May you make lots of best memories!