En Famille

(This post was originally published on March 31, 2010. I am pulling it from the archives because my father turned 87 on Wednesday and I wasn’t able to be there with him. I am pulling it from the archives…just because.)

What do you do when your kids are scheduled to sing in the local choir on the same day as your father’s 85th birthday celebration in North Dakota?

You go home to see your father, of course.

With all due respect to Kids Praise Too.

Felicity was a little disappointed, as she loves singing at the Palm Sunday Mass. “Oh well,” she said brightly. “There’s always next year!”

And then she gave me a serious look. “Except for Ellie. For Ellie there’s no next year.”

(Ellie was our beloved Golden Retriever who died last month.)

True, Felicity, very true. For Ellie, there is no next year.

Is there a next year for any of us?

We don’t know, do we? So heck if we shouldn’t drain today to the dregs.

I’m just saying.

I never got to know any of my grandparents, incidentally. They had all died by the time I was old enough to remember them. My kids, though, will remember all their grandmas and grandpas, including Grandpa George and Grandpa Rita.

What a blessing. What a huge blessing.

So yes, my father turned 85 on March 28th, which turned out to be Palm Sunday this year.

Pretty cool, eh?

All the more reason to have a party.

All the more reason to honor our dad.

(Not that we ever need a reason.)

Have a blessed Palm Sunday with your family, everyone! And may you always know the treasure that they are.