Cherished Moments
Uncle Eddie, my Sister Sharon and myself.
Within our lifetime we all experience moments of great import. Signal points, if you will, which your mind will wander back to time and time again. They’re usually filled with strong emotion and can be caused by the widest variety of things you can imagine. The death of a loved one. The birth of a child. A life changing experience. Or simply a special night. I had one of those tonight.
My Father’s memorial is tomorrow, January 21st. His wishes were to be cremated and have his ashes dispersed at sea, which we’ll be doing in the morning. Tonight, we got all the family who came in from out of town and had dinner together. Amongst the many family members who came into town was my 82-year-old Uncle Eddie, my Father’s Brother.
Eddie and his son Larry were running late due to Los Angeles traffic, so the rest of us were already seated when the arrived. At one point we saw two men coming into the restaurant and my Brother-In-Law Randy had the best view of the door. My sister Liz asked, “Is that them?” Randy responded, having never met Eddie or seen his picture before, “Yeah, they’re definitely here.”
In walked my Uncle. He pushed his way into the restaurant with his walker and suddenly my entire family was overwhelmed– the similarities my Father and his brother share in appearance took our breath away. In fact most of us got rather teary eyed as we ran over to greet Eddie and Larry. It was a powerful moment that included a connection that I can’t properly explain.
I’ve only met my Uncle Eddie once before. Eight or ten years ago he and his wife flew out to Los Angeles to spend some time with my family. We went out to dinner that night and my Father, Eddie and I sat at one end of the table and Eddie regaled me with stories of their youth and how much respect he had for my father. I found I rather liked this man instantly. But, at the time, I don’t remember he and my Father looking that much alike. Sure, there were similarities, but not like tonight.
I got to spend some time with Eddie tonight and I look forward to spending more time with him over this weekend. It was really incredible listening to him talk about my Father and getting the chance to tell him about the man I loved and admired. Oh, and getting to hear him talk about his time in World War II was incredibly special. I became emotional a number of times while talking with him, noticing the similarities between he and my father. It’s not just that they have a similar look, but Eddie’s mannerisms, his sense of humor, his body language, it’s all quite remarkable how alike they are to my Father’s.
Eddie and my Father drifted apart in their adult years. In my lifetime I only know of two times that my Father saw his brother in person. Once during that time I mentioned above, another time when my Father went home to Cincinnati to spend some time with his Sister and Brother. How is it two men, who spent so much time apart in their adult life, can still have so much in common?
I guess this is all a long-winded way of saying I had one of those moments tonight. I’m absolutely elated that my Uncle Eddie came out for my Father’s memorial. It means so much.
