Today, my dad would have turned 75 and I know I’ll be thinking of him more as everytime I have to write today’s date on forms will be a reminder of his birthday.
This morning I woke up thinking about how we inherit genetic traits of our parents but those don’t mold us into the people we grow up to be. We may LOOK like them, but the genes we get from them don’t necessarily make us ACT like them. We spend our youth looking at our parents, emulating them if we like what we see, or doing the opposite if we don’t. As adult we make our own decisions but in the back of our mind, we somehow do certain things the way our parents used to when we were growing up under their care.
One thing my dad gave me comes to mind immediately when I think of the way I am today:
I love movies, ever since I was a kid I’ve loved them. One of my first memories is going to Saturday matinees with my dad and feeling totally special sitting in the theatre. In the late sixties they would show a lot of Gladiator type movies, Sinbad type movies, lot’s of “lost in the Jungle” type movies, tons of “adventure” movies that were definitely the precursor to the Indiana Jones series. Also James Bond movies… those were even more special as they were deemed “For 14 Yrs or Older” but my dad took me to a few of them before I was of “age” as we both shared the joy of watching the spy in action with his amazing cars and gadgets. Movies became an easy place to escape and let the imagination run wild and I know I have to thank him for that.
Of course there are many other traits I have stolen from him… I can be very outspoken when I disagree with something. I vote Liberal. I love to garden. I love practical jokes, but not necesarily on the receiving end… We both loved to listen to a call-in radio show where the host pretended to be a different character to trick people while on the phone… sort of like Candid Camera but with a phone instead. Just before I moved away from home, he used to drive me to the bus station every morning and that particular programme would be on during our drive and we always laughed out loud together.
Happy birhday dad, I know you’re having a good one.
Joyeux anniversaire! He’s laughing now, I bet!
Happy birthday, Dad.
I’m a graphic designer and photographer because my dad and I used to go out into the woods and fields of Michigan and shoot photos. He is one of the most talented eyes I’ve ever seen, yet he never sought to be anything other than a great electrician who kept the cars rolling off the line.
I owe my dad a lot. And I appreciate him more every day.
Lew: keep it that way, they are to be appreciated, they’ve all done so much for us