Happy Father's Day post

The photo is of my father when he was a teenager, fishing the Linville River in Western North Carolina. I came across this photo a few years ago when helping my grandma pack up stuff and I copied the faded black and white print with a digital camera. He's been fishing all his life, although he generally fishes salt water now. He fishes fresh water when he comes to see me, but with mom's health, he hasn't been able to make it up there in over 3 years.

It’s hard to think of Dad as old. He was probably 50 before I regularly beat him in one-on-one basketball. He had this nasty hook shot that couldn’t be blocked. As a kid, I'd watch him play baseball and softball in awe. Although I could hit decently, my fielding never came close to his. I think it was two years ago, three years after my mom’s illness was diagnosed, I flew home and when I saw him standing at the exit to the concourse, I saw for the first time the look of an old man. It was shocking for he was always so young. However, the next day, we were out in his boat looking for fish and there, at the helm with the salt spray in his face, he was young again. He loves being on the water.

I’ve seen a new side of Dad over the past five years as he’s cared for mom. Although he was never strict, I wouldn’t have ever used terms like gentle to describe him. But now I would. There is not much Mom can do for herself now and my father waits on her all day. He takes her to the bathroom, changes her, insists that she take her medicine, eats and drinks enough liquid. It’s a new career for dad, essentially working as a nursing aide. But he insists on not putting Mom in a nursing home, although he has recently started letting her stay for a week at a time for some respite which he desperately needs.

I know Dad misses traveling. He has travelled his whole life, having worked on the road for over 40 years. He started out with a territory and by the time I was in high school was flying all over the country and when I was in college that expanded to all over the globe. He enjoyed travelling and, when I talked to him about the changes that he has faced over the past five years, traveling is the one thing he misses the most. When we kids were all grown, Mom went back to college and became a social worker, but only worked a few years. She quit so she could travel with my father, who enjoyed having her along with him. The two of them have been together since high school. And they’ll be together till the end. Until then, and afterwards, I hope Dad can still get out on the water occasional and that one day he’ll be able to travel again. Happy Father’s Day, Dad.

And may all you Dad's out in the blogging world also have a wonderful Father's Day.