Raices y Ramas

  December 20 th is my Dad’s birthday.   Every year I try to write a little something different about him on this date.   I thought this year I would use something my younger brother Tom wrote in his “journal” that I found when he passed away in 2001.   I’m amazed at the detail Tom uses when reminiscing about Dad.   This story described Dad in a nutshell.   From cooking tacos (or tamales) to good-naturedly cussing to being there with an alternative answer to a problem, that was Dad.   Even though Tom and I didn't have Dad around relatively long growing up (Tom was 13, I was 16), it was apparently long enough to impress our young minds and help to shape our characters for the rest of our lives.   December 20 is also the date Mom and Dad got married in 1941.   Please pray for both of them today, won’t you?   Thanks! With all of that being said, here’s what Tom wrote: (the illustration above was also drawn by Tom) "WHO NEEDS A FISHIN...

  Lily turns 12 tomorrow!   She’s no longer a ‘little girl’, but a ‘young lady’.   I thought it might be interesting to recall my memories of that day.   It was quite an adventure for me!   My mom and I had made plans to travel to Simi Valley so Mom could stay with my brother Bob and his wife Marilyn for the holidays.   I was just going to drive her down there, maybe have a bite to eat, go to Mass, then return home, because Alicia was due to deliver Lily at any time.   If I didn't feel like driving all the way back that night, my intention was to stay at the apartment that U-Haul had set up for me when I worked in Bakersfield, then drive home in the morning refreshed. Everything was going as planned and we were on our way on time.   We thought we could stop every couple of hours to stretch our legs and grab a water.   Highway 5 would be the quickest way to get to Simi.   We got as far as the Westley rest stop outside of Tracy when I ...