Sorrow lasts for a night, but Joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5)
Last week this Bible verse came true for my family. On Thursday evening, Feb. 16, my father went home to be with the Lord. On Friday morning, Feb. 17, my daughter, Elizabeth, gave birth to my granddaughter, Addelyn Klein.
I will miss my father very much. We were always very close and happy to be together.
I have wonderful memories of my childhood with my Dad. We would go to the People’s store on Michigan Ave. in Chicago. My dad would buy chocolate covered peanuts at the candy counter and we would sit on the large landing dividing the staircases and watch the people. I thought that was why they called it the People store.
Every fall we would rake the leaves and my dad would burn them so we could roast marshmallows over the fire. When our hands could reach the push mower handles, Dad would have us stand in front of him to help him cut the grass. We also learned to paint the walls as toddlers: first with water and then with paint. Dad and I loved to watch Tarzan movies starring Johnny Weissmuller on Saturday afternoons. As a child I thought he knew Roy Rogers and Gene Autry personally. We watched westerns with him and he liked shows like Bonanza and Gun Smoke. Sometimes when our old black and white TV broke down, he would get out his harmonica or his mandolin and play for us. We would sing cowboy songs with him.
He would eat Jeannette and my tiny cakes we made in our Easy Bake Oven. A few years later, he was even happier when we baked large cakes, cookies, brownies, etc. in the real oven. My mom made great pies and butterscotch meringue was Dad’s favorite. She would make it for his birthday. Fortunately, mom taught me to cook and to bake when I was young because when she got sick I could do the cooking. When mom was very sick, Dad, Larry, Jeannette and I joined forces. Dad said we would never be able to do all that Mom did, but we could team up together and try. He would split the grocery list in half and give me half and then race me in the grocery store. This didn’t work very well because Dad didn’t know the products that Mom usually bought. I did. But he always tried to make things fun even in the worst of times.
Dad was a wonderful speaker who won awards in the Toastmaster organization. Most of his speeches were humorous. His sense of humor got us through a lot of trouble and hard times. I followed in his footsteps, giving several public speeches in Jr. High School and joining the Debate team in high school. He also read all of my term papers, poetry, and short stories. When I was about 10 years old and having problems with mean kids at school, my dad gave me his books, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie and The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale. He also would read Rudyard Kipling’s poetry to me. He told me that when someone hurts you write him a letter and then tear it up. He also said that, “the squeaky wheel gets the grease.” After I left home, I had Dad’s and Mom’s voices in my head. When I had difficulties, I would think; what would Dad do; or what would Mom do? It helped me in making decisions.
For several summers when I was in high school I worked at dad’s office at Sherwin Williams. This experience consisted of riding in Dad’s car pool with his friend, Crazy Fred. I attribute learning to pray often on those terrifying trips. Dad at the office was very well respected. He would take me out to lunch with his friends, Alice Harris and Norris Bishton. I could tell that he was proud of me and that gave me confidence in myself.
When I married Ron, Dad walked me down the aisle. He really didn’t want me to get married yet. He said I was completely trained to do everything in the house and now I was leaving. Ron and I lived close to Mom and Dad in Illinois and so Ron established a close relationship with both of them. After they moved to Cincinnati and we moved to Indiana, we saw them as often as we could. We played pinochle, went out to dinner, visited and took care of the kids together. Daddy was a wonderful grandfather and great grandfather. He loved babies and was a great babysitter. My children were all very attached to their grandfather and my grandchildren were also close to him. His presence in their lives will be missed.
I know that Dad is with Mom in heaven right now and that is where he wanted to be. But it will be difficult to not see him and talk to him. When I lived at home, every morning, Dad would hug me and tell me that he loved me. He knew when I was upset and would ask me to tell him what was wrong. He was my confident, my companion, my supporter and my Daddy.