Pals Forever

 

 

 

"We took an oath in Indian Guides that we would be "pals forever" - and we were..."

Today is a day I have been anticipating and dreading at the same time. Today would have been my Dad's 100th birthday. I have been anticipating it as I wanted to write a fitting tribute to a man who has meant so much to me. I have been dreading it, as I knew it would open  memories that could probably make me melancholy and sad.

In 1956, my Dad joined the YMCA so he could spend more time with his six year old son. Along with other boys and their fathers from the neighborhood, we formed an Indian Guides troop. The motto for Indian Guides was "pals forever". We all had Indian names. Dad was "Big Wind" and I was "Little Wind". We, along with the other boys and their dads, would do fun activities once or twice a month.

All throughout my boyhood, and then into manhood, Dad was always there for me. He dropped me off when I went in the Navy, and came to my retirement ceremony. Besides being a great father to me, he was a thoughtful and caring husband to my Mother, an excellent father in law to my wife, and a loving grandparent to my kids. My dad always had a story. He loved history, studied with abandon, and really knew his stuff.

He worked in manufacturing most of his life. He knew it and loved it. When I got out of college and worked in manufacturing for my first 25 years, my Dad could not have been happier. He wanted to know everything about what my company did and what they made. After he retired, I think Dad lived vicariously through my career. We had many great conversations, and I never tired of them.

My Dad's health was pretty good up until the last year of his life, when he was diagnosed with throat cancer. I remember many trips taking him to the clinic for radiation treatment. He lost his sense of taste about halfway through the regiment. He never complained. He kept his sense of humor right up until the end.

So on this birthday, this 100th birthday, I salute my Dad. He is gone but never forgotten. He died ten years ago next month. He was my pal when I was six, he was my pal until he left us, and he remains my pal today. Pals forever...