85

My Father would have been 85 today. But because 14 years ago he died, he has left me.

He was 71 when a stroke took a nice brain and put it to sleep. All of a sudden he was here. And then he was not. Mom was still alive, and had another 11 and 1/2 years left to go on her schedule. But even as she was my true friend and comforter, keeping one parent does not compensate or console one for losing another.

I have two arms. If I stuck one out of the car window and it was chopped off by a stop sign, I would not feel good that I still have at least one. Parents are stand alones too , even when they are one of a couple. And when death does his black duty, the remaining tall mysterious person we discovered as children as our keepers and minders and gods, cannot help. Going from Mom and Dad to Mom is too great a tragedy for anyone to mitigate.

In the beginning, I loved and adored my Father, then for many years I thought he was stupid, and far too late, but in time, I discovered how much this man loved me. And cared about my fate. And knew far more about life than I ever will.

He caressed my soul, like a Mother natually does.

But my Father, A MAN, had the psyche and spirit of a good woman.

And I miss him everyday.

Joe