See you on the other side Soupy!

Soupy, Pete, Donald, Dad Dad, Sarge, Don, Dad! So many names to match the many different sets of people who loved him.
I lost my own father when I was 16 to a hard fought battle with Leukemia so when I fell in love with Don, I was thrilled to have a father figure in my life again. We had a great 22 years together. I like to cook and he was the best cook/baker I have ever known since my Dad passed away. They were two of a kind in that way. You know, the throw in a bit of this and a pinch of that kind of cook that only time spent cooking on a Navy ship can teach. Dad C made the best stuffing I have ever savored. So last November, seems I had taken over the Thanksgiving dinner, I asked if we could prepare it together. I mean he had it written down but I am a visual learner. So we spent several hours in his kitchen together and I learned the nuances that go into making that delicious turkey stuffing. It is so much more than ingredients: it is the way you cut the bread and let it stale. It is the way you cook the sausage and bacon and then use that same grease to saute the celery. (Hey, I never said it was healthy!) I keep thinking back to that day together and so many other wonderful memories of my father-in law. He was a master story teller. He was a devoted husband. He was a loving father. He was a funny and wise daddad to my kids. He was colorful yet gentle. He was a problem solver. He was a protector. He was a true patriarch in every way and our family now has a huge void gaping hole. On Tuesday night about two hours after we said goodbye to this giant of a man, we had gathered at my mother in laws home and the roof shook and an overwhelming sound of rain quieted us all. We ran to the window to watch a thunderous downpour that stopped almost as soon as it started. We all just looked at each other and I turned and cried. "He is there! He made it to heaven. He wanted us to know he got there!' We all agreed especially the next day when others in Catonsville said that it hadn't rained at their house that night before. Oh, he is in heaven all right! He and our girl Meghan and my Dad as well. Can you smell that? Yup, smells just like celery sauteing in a pan of bacon fat.....mmm!

On turning 48...

It is funny that about a month ago, I was dreading this birthday. It seems that every time I finish up a decade of my life, I swear that the next, upcoming decade, will be the best one yet: The 20's were when we were going to travel...not! The 40's were supposed to be my time to get fit and feel better....not! You get the idea. So of course with the 50's coming up I have reflected on the 40's and back. I was thinking about all of the things I hadn't accomplished or the disappointments of those years. WHY? When did I become the "glass half empty girl?" All my life, I have been complimented on my optimism and love of life! As I have sat in the hospital with my failing mother (just 73 years old) the past two weeks, I have had a complete reversal in thinking. My God, how lucky am I to even be celebrating a birthday? To have lived and loved on this Earth for 48 years? Sitting with mom has put it all in perspective. I have experienced so much happiness over the years and it had nothing to do with what my age was or what decade I was in! I haven't traveled the globe but I have journeyed through such moments of pure love with my family. I have explored and challenged my intellectual self by continuing my education. I do not have a passport but I have lifeport filled with treasured conversations, memories and experiences. I am the luckiest and most blessed 48 year old I know! The big 50 coming up....hell yeah! Bring it!