An interesting question

There was a question posed on FB this week that got me thinking,

“What did your Dad teach you?”

While this might be a more appropriate topic for Father’s Day, my Dad’s all consuming love of all things Christmas makes it apropo at this time of year.

I asked my siblings the question.

Here were their responses:

1. He taught me how to parallel park and was a little critical that I was quite a distance from the curb.

2,  He taught me how to get from our apartment in the Bronx to Mount St. Michael in Mount Vernon.  It involved buses and subways.  I was 11. Dad walked me up to the front gate.  He basically said “now you are on your own. See you tonight”.

3,  He taught me that you never fight on a holiday as you can’t get the day back.

4,  He taught that worry is pointless.  Whatever is going to happen is going to happen so why waste time worrying.

My friend, Kathy, said she learned how a parent loves their children.

I learned:

Work ethic.  Everyone one of his children obtained gainful employment as soon as they were old enough. My brothers both started working at 12,  both at neighborhood deli/grocery stores. My sister and I babysat but started “real” jobs when we each turned 16 at Bambergers (a subsidairy of Macys).

Dad taught me how to come in second in a Waltz Contest (avoid the judges for as long as you can).  

He taught me that holding my hand and squeezing it was another way to say “I love you”.

His belief in me going to work in The Big Apple.  Mom said “no”. Dad said, “she will get an education working there like no where else in the world.”  As I got ready to head out my first day as a commuter, I asked Dad what do I do when the train from Pearl River arrives in Hoboken, NJ.  He said “follow the crowd” . He was right.  I followed the crowd to the PATH trains through the World Trade Center and out on to the street for the one block walk to 140 Broadway.

He also taught me the joy of  Christmas.  I learned to believe that on Christmas Eve anything is possible. And yes, like Dad, I still look to the skies on Christmas Eve and watch for Santa in his sleigh and reindeer pulling them through the night sky.

At this time of year more than any other, I miss him because of the way he made December 24th feel. From lighting the fireplace Christmas Eve morning and making sure it never went out until we headed to bed Christmas night, to his taking over the kitchen to make our Christmas Eve feast, to him dragging a sled through the backyard, making hoof prints and boot marks to the back door of our house.

Magic.

What did your Dad teach you? Their lessons/advice are things that last throughout our lives.

See you next week.