My Father(s)
My father got married after his service in WWII. He didn’t waste any time becoming a father because I was born nine months later. I was lucky, we had a good relationship. His legacy is the dozens of country tunes I learned from him. Songs that I still sing at our music jams. I never was as interested in fishing as he was, even though many of fish he caught matched my height.
My second father was my dad’s brother Ed Poltrack. He was my Godfather who played an important role in my life. Ed would sing harmony to those cowboy tunes with my dad and always showed interest in my own pursuits of photography and electronics. If it weren’t for my Uncle Ed I never would have heard of the Tex Ritter song Blood on the Saddle. I share that memory with John Prine.
I’m a Dad
I got my turn being a dad in 1976. It is a lot of work, but the work is important. Mainly I tried to keep my three children alive and make them laugh.
What is it like, being a dad?
I’m blessed. I had a great dad and I have great kids. Sometimes they do things which make you smile. I’ll end with this post with this gem that my oldest son wrote me years ago. I still don’t want to talk about it.
Annotated Transcription
Dear Dad,
Because Child World will not carry this unique car forever.
[Child World went bankrupt in April 1992]
I need at least $140. That will greatly shorten the amount of time to buy this costly item.
[It will shorten the time since I’ll be paying for it]
I promise to pay every penny back, and instead of interest, I will mow most of the lawn for free (it will still count as a chore for this year).
[Let me consult with my lawyers. What constitutes “most of the lawn”? Why does this get chore status too?]
PLUS if you write an I.O.U. I can at least have a chance to use it in the summer.
[Why am I writing an I.O.U.? I’m giving you the cash?]
Now I know I already have a car but it’s not as nice as much fun as this one. With a 15 minute recharger that plugs into a cars lighter socket, I feel that I can take this car anywhere. So please reconsider.
Your Bud Matt
[My buddy…]
P.S. I wrote this because you don’t like talking about the subject
[Truly an astute observation, I really don’t want to talk about it]
The Car
I believe Matt did get the car. The lawn was mowed and I got my own version of a rechargeable, however it takes 12 hours to recharge.
