Till Death Do Us Part… A Mother’s Day Love Story

Till Death Do Us Part… A Mother’s Day Love Story

by | May 14, 2017 | Really? The Personal ScLoHo

Everyone has their favorite stories about their Mom for Mother’s Day and Dad for Father’s Day that they will share on Facebook.

I want to do a couple of things differently.

My parent’s love story is summed up in what happened in 1998 on Mother’s Day weekend.

My parents met in the 1950’s when he was in the Navy and she was living at home near Chicago.  My Mom and her friends would take the train to Navy Pier on the weekend and meet some sailors.  One time she met my Dad and they married with a “till death do us part” line in their vows I suppose.

I didn’t come into this world until my Mom was 26 and Dad was 29.  I was blessed to see the fun and struggles and there’s plenty to tell but today I’m going to fast forward to Mother’s Day weekend 1998.

My Dad had been diagnosed with cancer a few months earlier and now was in hospice care.  My Dad always would grumble about Mother’s Day and Father’s Day being “merchant holidays” but he also knew how important those days were to his wife.  A rose or a dozen would always be included with a romantic card.  But in 1998 it was going to be different.

I was living about an hour away but came to see my Dad that weekend. His cancer should have ended his life by now but he was still with us even though he was unable to speak.

We communicated by my talking to him and him signally his answers. On Saturday I bought a rose & Mother’s Day card  and helped him sign it so that when my Mom visited Sunday, the tradition continued.

Monday, the day after Mother’s Day 1998, we got a call that he passed away, quietly when no one was in his room.  It was if he waited. Waited to give my Mom one last Mother’s Day card and rose and then waited until no one was in his room the next day to leave this planet.

That’s a dedication of,”Till Death Do Us Part”.

No matter what you think of Mother’s Day, or Father’s Day, celebrate it the way the Mom’s and Dad’s in your life want to remember it.

The Teens

The Teens

by | Nov 14, 2011 | Really? The Personal ScLoHo

I wonder if teenage rebellion has been around forever?

December 11, 1972 is when I officially became a teen.

For some reason I thought that the 1960’s or 1950’s were the decades that it all started.

I was wrong.

It has been a part of the growing process since the beginning of time.

Having been a Dad to 3 plus Stepdad to 2 more, I’ve learned that when those times come, hang on.

Hold your ground as a parent, but let them spread their wings too.

You don’t want to become their BFF (Best Friend Forever).

They need a grown up to be the support and foundation.

One day, they will look at you with fresh eyes and you will not be the “scum of the earth that ruined their life”.

You’ll be the grandparent, or the adviser, or parent/adult/friend that loves them despite all their screw ups and they will love you back despite all your screw ups too.

Now there are no guarantees that they will stop rebelling as some never do, but it’s a two-way street and if you try and hold them too close, they’ll always try and break free.

For some that rebellion starts at age 2… for some it ends at age 50…

But even in those darkest hours, I’ve discovered while they won’t say it to your face, they still love you and want you as Mom or Dad.