Dad

I can never say enough about my dad. I miss him so much even though it has been over 20 years since his death. He would help all the little old widows with their chores, people in town thought he was so sweet. No one (except my mother) ever said a bad word against him. He loved all of his children equally, and even my half sister was no different for him, you would never have known that she was not his own.

The Colomb family was like that, at least the ones I knew. Aunt Dot was rather taciturn but always kind. Aunt Gladys was the independent spinster sister, never married, always doing for others, also never one to say something bad about someone else. The Colomb's were readers, guess we know who Jessica takes after. They would gather in the living room and read with sparse lighting. My mother hated this, she and her mother both loved TV. I can remember Grandma Ploof talking to her TV cause it was fairly new to her by the time she got the first one, my mother planned her day around daytime TV shows.

Dad's best display of humor came when he retired and he got a big cash payout. He went and bought a used car. He had it painted to match mom's!! That started years of dad trading for a car off the lot that would be the same color as the special order one that mom had purchased, that way it always looked like she copied him instead of the other way around. God love him, he sure did deserve a laugh or two.

I can still see the towel rack in our horribly ugly bathroom. Mom and I could use the "new" towels but dad was relegated to these threadbare rags. He never complained. My mom gives you $$ but she definitely holds it against you, doesn't want it paid back but you are going to pay for asking for help. My dad always made it clear that it was a loan and the payback was expected, but it was never a guillotine over your head.

I learned alot from my dad and I always hope that I am more like him then my mother. Sometimes I see myself being more bitchy like her and I try to step back. When things are particularily tough with Mabel, I talk to dad and hope that, someplace out there, he can hear me. He was such a ray of sunshine on this earth for so many people.