Project 365 Day 169: For My Dad

Canon 5D Mark ll, 24-70 2.8L, 2.8 aperture, 1/25 shutter, 1000 ISO

(This photo was taken at Christmas time. It is a departure from my traditional daily photo for my project, but as I perused the photos I had for today, my heart kept coming back to this image I took the last time I was with my dad. With it being Father’s Day, I felt it appropriate. I adjusted my project for this entry.)

I took this photograph of my dad as his image reflected in the antique mirror over his sofa in his home. We were visiting for Christmas, and he was listening intently as one of the kids sang for him. His hair is almost pure white now, and he still has plenty of it. A trait Johnny will be glad about later in his life, as he will inherit this same glorious head of hair.  My heart squeezes tight as I endeavor to type thoughts about my dad. I don’t get to see him much. He lives 500 miles away. Or should I say, I live 500 miles away, since I am the one who moved away from home. He would say that. Still not sure he has truly forgiven me for that. He jokes about it, but I know. He misses me. He misses us. None of his four children live there in Virginia anymore. My husband, my life, brought me here to Georgia. I don’t know why it happened that way, but it did. We built our lives here, and now we are 500 miles apart. Sometimes it feels like it might as well be a million. It is a ten hour drive to see him. He is not much for talking on the phone, and he does not get on the computer or write letters. Might as well be a million.

I will call him tomorrow on Father’s Day, and pass the phone around to the kids and to Chris. He will ask us about our lives, and we his.  He always tries to hide his tears during the goodbye and makes me promise to give everyone a hug and kiss for him. “Do you promise?” He always asks intently. “I promise”, I answer emphatically. “I love you, Dad,” I will assure him. I need him to know, to believe that, even though I moved 500 miles away. “I love you too, sweetheart,” He will manage to say through his tears. Sadness always clings to me as I press “end” on my phone. Does it have to say “end”? For now, I guess it does. Until I call again, or get in the car or on a plane to see him. My siblings and I are all flying out to see him in a couple weeks for his 80th birthday. I look forward to that.

My dad has always had a passion for gardening and growing things. He loves flowers.  He was the first one to personify flowers for me. He talked about Pansies and their “sweet little faces”. I remember thinking how wonderful it was to think of flowers as having faces. Now, I don’t really see them any other way. I have my dad to thank for that. He was an English teacher, and often spoke in prose and poetry. He has an amazing collection of old books, which Annie admires when she goes to see him. He is also witty and sharp. Don’t let that white hair fool you. He knows everything that is going on.  I hope to be like him in that way when I grow older. When I was growing up, he was quite the prankster. I think April Fools Day was his favorite holiday. My sister Liza and I often got the worst of it, being the last two to leave home. He would wait until we got up in the morning and then go stuff our bed with pillows, shaping them to look like a person, complete with a wig at the top. When we returned from breakfast, we would always shriek or scream, and then hear him laughing in another part of the house. He had been waiting for that scream.

He is not perfect, but he is my dad, and I do love him very much. I wish he lived right down the street so I could pop in for some conversation and laughter several times  a week. I would love to show him what I am working on, and get his opinion on my business decisions. We could plant flowers or I could make him some of his favorite dishes, like Brunswick Stew. But, he doesn’t. I will have to settle for a phone call tomorrow. In between, I will pray for him, for his health and happiness.

Blessings to you all on Father’s Day. I hope you get to see and hug your dad.