Thursday, October 15, 2009

A Small Man. A Large Presence.


















My father-in-law, Paul C passed away yesterday. He was 90 years old.

According to pictures, Mr. C was never a very large man. He was straight and stout, but not very tall. When I met him, some 21-22 years ago, he was a little taller than me (I am 5'2"), and maybe 140-150 lbs. Over the past 5 or 6 years he has become smaller and thinner. With no fat on his body, he wore a sweater and sock cap mostly year round.

But when Mr. C walked into a room, you took notice. He had a deep, rich voice and it carried to all reaches of the room. He had a hearty laugh and a twinkle in his eye.

He loved to tease the girls when they were little by playing ventriloquist with their stuffed toys. His granddaughter 'M' especially took delight in these antics and would talk to the stuffed animals (to whom he was giving voice to) as if they were truly alive and speaking on their own.

He and Mrs. C, who passed a few years back, put on a wonderful spread and display at Thanksgiving. The first time we went to their house for Thanksgiving after Hubster and married, Arthur was 8 years old and not accustomed to such a fanfare exclaimed 'I feel like a princess' when she walked into the dining room with the turkey, fat, golden brown and gleaming on a table surrounded by visually temping side dishes, real china, crystal wine glasses and flickering candles. This absolutely tickled them to no end!

Mr. and Mrs. C accepted Arthur as their own grandchild, and not long after that 'M' and Courage came along. Birthdays and holidays were always fun, or at the least, interesting, at my in-laws. They are Catholic and I had to get used to seeing wine on the table for an 'every day' meal. It also took some adjustment on my part to hear an 'old' person curse like a sailor, and laugh at the same time!

Mr. C was a pilot in the Airforce, an accountant for Dobbins AFB after that, and then he volunteered his accounting abilities to his church for many years. He was the father of one son and two daughters, and the grandfather of three girls and two boys.

In the past few years when I visited Mr. C and would be leaving his house, he would warn me to drive carefully and to watch out for 'the crazy bastards', for he felt no one in Lawrenceville could drive worth a damn. I am inclined to agree!

I was with Mr. C when he passed. I prayed with him, stroked his hair and face, held his hand, and wet his lips. When he took his last breath, he was freed from the confines of his small and withered body, and God welcomed him into his arms.

God bless Mr. C. May he rest in eternal peace.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Time Gobblers


Every day, I deal with time gobblers. Those little things that eat up the minutes, the hours, the day...leaving me feeling like I got nothing accomplished.

In the mornings there are things like indecisiveness on what to wear to work, bad hair days where I have to re-wet my hair and start all over, mornings when I need to check the Internet before leaving the house. You know, just in case I got a VERY IMPORTANT email overnight. Minutes are gobbled up...sometimes causing me to run late for work.

At work, little time gobblers sneak in in the form of co-workers stopping by to say hi, making coffee because the primary office coffee drinker/maker has stopped drinking coffee, and therefore has stopped making coffee, the need to go to the bathroom, the need to stop everything and look for a lost citation, the need to check my emails (work and personal), just in case I got a VERY IMPORTANT email since this morning...and since I checked it at work the last time. Minutes are gulped and swallowed but my, how it makes the day pass by more easily.

On the way home, minutes are devoured by the need to stop by the grocery store for bread, diet coke or blueberries; things me or Courage cannot live without. Sometimes minutes are chewed away by a gas station stop or movie drop or movie pick - up or fast food run. Oh, don't even think about the time consumed when one must stop and go inside the Walmart. Thank the Lord, they do not have computer stations set up at Walmart, Kroger or Quick Trip.

Finally, at home, when the house needs my attention, dinner is waiting to be prepared, clothes are piling up... I must take a few 'minutes' to check Face Book, my Blogs, and email. I also have to see what other people have written on their blogs, see what pictures People has posted of my favorite stars, and see what kind of rudeness Perez Hilton has dished out for the day. I need to check my checking account, pay a bill or two on-line, check the t.v. guide to see what is on tonight. Next thing I know, the minutes turn into hours, and it's time to go to bed. The minutes are gone by way of wireless Internet.

I yell up stairs to Courage to please bring down her dirty laundry or some other mundane chore, and she yells back 'In a Minute'.

Sorry, I have no minutes. My laptop ate them all.