Monday, December 17, 2007

Visiting My Father & Dinner At My Son's House

I woke up on Saturday morning with the sound of sleet pelting my bedroom window. I was so happy that I didn't need to get up and leave my warm bed or my house. When I did finally get up, the outdoors was a mess. My car and the entire neighborhood were covered with ice and the freezing rain was pouring down. Eventually the temperature rose above freezing but the rain continued all day. We ended up getting 2½ inches of rain on Saturday. Later in the day I did venture out to visit my father in the hospital, along with one of my brothers there. Dad was a little out of it and slept most of the time. When he was awake it was difficult to judge how aware he was. His eyes seemed empty and I felt sad looking into them. When it was time to go he was sleeping again so I did not wake him. Since I rarely see my brother, and even more rarely have time for a personal conversation with him, we drove to a nearby restaurant for some lunch. It was good to have an opportunity for some quality conversation.

Later on Saturday I talked to Chloe on the phone. She doesn't yet have me on her speed dial but her father had called and she wanted to talk with my wife and me. We had a pleasant conversation. As soon as she learns to dial a phone, my phone will start ringing off the hook.

Sunday was a quiet and beautiful day. The sun was shining most of the day and it was cold and crisp. Later in the day my wife, son, and I went to my other son's home for dinner. He and my daughter in law, along with Chloe's help, had the whole house decorated for Christmas. Mike inherited that skill from my wife. He also prepared an excellent dinner. He inherited that skill from me with a little help from the Food Channel. My son and daughter in law have a beautiful home. Everyone knows that I am proud of my son Nick who is becoming a priest but I am also proud of his brother. My son, Mike, was my wild child and we had some difficult years. In spite of that, he has also turned out very well. He has a wonderful wife, an excellent job, a beautiful home, and a daughter that I adore. Looking at both my sons, I feel very successful as a parent. For all of you still raising children into adulthood, hang in there. I was far from being a perfect father and my sons have both turned out great in spite of that. Parenting is not a race. Sometimes you just have to be patient and wait for the fruit to ripen. By the way, there's little doubt what tree these two fell from.

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