Most every weekend I was in NY state I spent it with my father and his new wife, and their new growing family.
My dad married my step-mother when I was 3 years old. I have been told when I was sitting in the church pew and my dad was waiting for his bride to walk down the aisle that I said," That's my Daddy, That's my Daddy up there." in a very loud voice to everyone in the church. I adored my father then and now. His tan skin and dark hair. His muscles, his scar on his arm. His love of life and his jovial nature. He had many people call him the mayor and some still do. He died suddenly in 2003 and some say he may be the mayor somewhere else now.
I loved weekends... going to my dad's meant that I could see him, watch cartoons ( my grandmother and I did not own a television) I could eat sugar cereal. My grandmother did not purchase any sugar cereal. I loved my brother but when my sister was born... I was in heaven... She was the cutest girl... I loved... playing with her... and she loved playing with me. She like to copy me and be like me.... funny how things change.
I had one game that my brother and sister loved to play on weekends... SCHOOL I would set up my fathers screened in porch and I would have desks for the neighbors children to sit at, and a big desk for me to sit at as the teacher, and I would go across the street to the Hallmark store and buy posters... that said Welcome back to school.. and I hung them up one August and we played school every weekend in August. My brother was a student and a gym teacher.. incidentally he went to Cortland and is a real Physical Education teacher now...The neighborhood kids would come willingly to "school" to do real letters, numbers and written work all August.
Christmas at my grandparents was always the Christmas eve, Italian tradition of opening one gift and having 7 kinds of fish...This as a child I enjoyed. I still love all kinds of fish or seafood. After Christmas eve dinner we would go go Christmas mass. We also would go back to my father's and I was allowed to sleep in my sisters bed every Christmas Eve... we always had trouble sleeping... and my sister always woke me up early and my dad would tell us to go back to bed... until we heard the Christmas music on downstairs.... I have very fond memories of Christmas and they are filled with tradition and happiness.
2 comments:
How nice of your stepmom to let you borrow her stuff! Sounds like you got along well with her and your siblings!
That sounds like an interesting Christmas tradition with the fish- though frankly its good I was not born italian because I hate seafood!!
I adore your description of your father. I played school all the time too! I loved it when we could bring our school bks home and some of the pages weren't used so I could pass them out as "real" homework.
I hope you branch out and record some of those other happy memories that you mention someday. All the ones you shared were really delightful. I want to visit your grandmother's house!
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