Tuesday, November 17, 2009

November brings thoughts of my dad

It was two years ago on November 2, 2007 that my dad passed away. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about him and about my mom, but this month of November is especially tender when I think about my dad. He was such a charismatic and genuinely friendly man...everybody loved him. He was such a wonderful father and I miss him so much. I was with him when he passed away and he died just six days shy of his 90th birthday.
This is a photo that my cousin emailed me recently. In this photo my dad is holding Garry Rick, my cousin. It was taken in Lyle, Minnesota where my dad grew up. My dad was 100% Norwegian and we often heard him say, "ufdah," a Norwegian word that means pretty much whatever the speaker wants it to mean. I have always thought that my dad was a pretty handsome guy...notice that he has a full head of hair in this photo. He was a fighter pilot in WWII and flew in North Africa during the war. I learned that he had to bail out of his P38 plane three different times...once in Egypt in the dessert, once over the Mediterranean Sea and once over Three Sisters in Oregon. I guess we were lucky to have him around as long as we did, for he certainly had several close calls during the war. We didn't find out about his war experiences until a year before he died. I guess it wasn't something he had ever wanted to talk about before that time. I was grateful that he finally told us or we would never have known.

My parent's gravestone in Portland, Oregon. My mom passed away on January 10, 2005 and I was there to witness her passing as well. She will have been gone for five years this January. My mom and my dad were special parents and grandparents and we all miss them. My comfort is in knowing that they have gone on to a better place and that we can be together as an Eternal family after this life. I am grateful for this blessing from our Heavenly Father.



7 comments:

Teresa said...

Sweet memories and wonderful post.
I understand you feelings- I have many of the same.
Thanks for sharing.

Molly said...

What a beautiful post! Thank you for sharing those neat memories. A while before my dad died, he started keeping a journal and it's so good to have that and know things about him that we wouldn't ordinarily know. And, I agree, the comfort of the Gospel is such a blessing, especially when you go through something like this.

John and Jill said...

Nice post Kristy! Your dad was a great guy! Always so friendly. Thanks for sharing.

Sparks in the Desert said...

Such a beautiful post on both of your parents. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Denise said...

I knew your father better than I knew your mother. He was such a nice man. He always seemed so happy when we saw him and he was so easy to be around. What sweet thoughts you've shared of him. They were both, obviously great parents, as they raised such a wonderful daughter (that's you).

Marilyn said...

He was very handsome! What a sweet post, you did (still do) have wonderful parents.

Ibiam said...

Memories of families live on forever thank you for sharing