There are times when you have to just take charge and figure out how to do things on your own. Some things are fairly easy to figure out like typing around a Pixie cat who insists that she gets her cuddle time by sitting in front of the keyboard. Some things are more difficult. I learned a lot on how to do things from my Dad. Today is my Dad’s birthday. He would have been 92 today. A sudden heart attack while planting a bush took him away from us in 1999. But the wisdom that he imparted keeps him alive.
Dad didn’t have the easiest of lives. His mother died when he was six and his Dad’s remarriage gave his children the step-mother from hell. Dad had a genius IQ and graduated from school at fifteen. Through the CCC camps he traveled throughout the United States and learned skills that would help him in later life. He joined the Army and after World War Two he went to college on the GI Bill. He was married to the same woman for fifty-five years and helped raise five children. He was an inspiration to his children and his only grandchild. He took a part of our hearts with him when he died. He was reunited with his beloved wife in May when Mom passed away.
One of the most important lessons that I learned from my Dad is that we have talents that we can use to better ourselves and to help others. When Dad retired and moved out to Indiana he volunteered to teach. I am still meeting grown men and women who had my Dad as a teacher and loved him and learned from him. Dad was a math genius and he learned all about taxes and did the tax returns for senior citizens.
One thing my Dad was passionate about was learning. He never wanted to stop and had books on every subject imaginable. The unexplained fascinated him and his books on ghosts and haunting and the mysteries of our planet and universe will be added to my collection. He and I loved mysteries and we traded them especially if the detectives were out of the mainstream as in Tony Hillerman’s Navaho detectives of Robert Van Gulik’s Ancient Chinese. Dad taught me to never stop learning.
One of our big loves that we shared is astronomy. I remember the first moon landing and Dad and I both wiping tears as Neil Armstrong took that first step on the moon. He taught me to be passionate about science and the importance of scientific reasoning and investigation. Our shared love and passing back and forth books on the Bermuda Triangle etc. were our way of acknowledging that we still have a lot to learn.
Dad taught me to believe in myself and my art work. He loved the art I did that had space themes. I learned from him not to be afraid to sell my work and also to use it to help raise money for charities. He taught me that even though I am one person that I can make a difference. He taught me not to be afraid to stand up for what I believe in. He always encouraged my activism. He taught me to reach for the moon and I didn’t have to settle for just ours I could reach farther.
One of the magazines Dad and I loved was National Geographic. The cover story in December 2006 was on Saturn and the Cassini probe. I was fascinated by the findings about the moon Enceladus and the geysers and water that was discovered. The big problem for me was that there were no pictures from the surface that would show what the view would look like. But Dad had taught me to think and read and learn. As I read the article and the scientific findings I knew that I could imagine the scene myself. From what we know I think this is what it would look like.
So in honor of Dad’s birthday I am passing on his wisdom. We must always learn as much as we can and always strive to learn more. We can all do something to help. If we love science teach it to others. If you have a telescope have viewing parties for the neighborhood and show them the wonders of science. If you can do taxes help the elderly do theirs. If you are at the store buy some extra cans of food and drop them off at a food pantry. If you are making a casserole make two and take one to a shut in. Live and learn and love each day. Don’t be afraid to reach for the moon. My moon is Enceladus. Which moon are you reaching for?
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