Mom: On the value of greeting cards and love signals

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When I met your Dad, one of the first things that stood out for me was that he cared more about my happiness than his own. He began showering me with greeting cards, for occasions, and if no special occasion was evident, he would create his own. He sent me cards to brighten my day or if he knew I was struggling with something. Any milestone date was fair game. He would send me a card to tell me he loved me, and on special dates, such as our anniversary, he would shower me with multiple cards. Each card would always have more than just his name, and he would write something to express his emotion to me. In fact, were it not for his love of greeting cards, I am not sure we would have ended up together.

After I met your Dad, I went on a trip to Mexico solo. It was the first time I had ever left the U.S.  This was a daring move for me, but I wanted a warm sunny beach, with crystal clear water, so I had decided to take a trip to Cozumel, even if it meant going alone. Before leaving, your Dad gave me a card and told me to not open or read it until I got to Mexico. I did, and this card had some carefully crafted words about what I meant to him. For years, I was distraught because I lost this card. But I do remember some of what it said. It said that he considered me a flower, and was lucky enough to watch me bloom, among other things. I read that card over and over again while in Mexico, and realized that perhaps this Jon could be more than just a friend for me. It was a pivotal change in our relationship because I missed your Dad so much.

So, while some may consider cards sappy, I do not. I fully understand the value of your Dad’s card giving, and encourage you to acquire the same habit when you want to make someone feel special. Because of this habit, I am lucky enough to still have some of the cards your Dad gave me. And, after we fell in love, your Dad had his signature closing in each card. It would say AML ATT, or if spelled out “All my love, all the time”. Another thing he often did was to write “I love you big time”. He would also motion with his hands, and point to his watch, to remind me that he loved me big time.

Dane, if you can remember when you were in the lower school literary meetings, I would always look at you as you were walking in or out of the auditorium, and point to my eye, heart, and then at you. This was my way of saying “I love you”. I just starting doing that, without really thinking about it. But, if I had to guess, it was probably me channeling your Dad. He could look across a room, or a large cafeteria at work, and with a simple gesture, I knew he loved me.

Uncle Stan: On snarky remarks from the youngest brother

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When Jon was about 13 years old (I was 23), I came over to Grandma & Grandpa’s house with a girlfriend, one of many that I had been dating over the past few years.  He greeted her (before I had a chance to introduce her to him), saying a little sarcastically: “hi, you must be Sue, or is it Joan, or perhaps Karen, maybe Stevie, …” while Debbie stood there rather perplexed.  I quickly jumped in saying: “Jon, this is Debbie, who’s a teacher.”  Jon smiled and said: “Oh, does that mean you have to do it over and over again, until you get it right?”

Bill Warwick: On Jon at the office

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For your dad, work was a party. For me work was a war. We were both in the Industrial Engineering department and your dad managed to negotiate only working on the budgets which required very little time and effort. He had it down to a science so that all the analysis and work was done by the departments and he just summarized it and put it in the final format. Your dad loved people and this freed up his day to spend visiting and getting the scoop on what was going on. Back then all the executives and departments had secretaries and Jon knew them all and in his charming way he found out what was going on before anyone else. Personal computers were new at the time and Jon was always interested in them. When we figured out something new we always shared it with Jon. When the executives struggled with their new computers Jon would pop in and help them get the computer back up and running.

Joelle: On Seltzer water

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IMG_5326Recently, I was walking through Harris Teeter with my roommates picking up some groceries for the apartment when I immediately smiled at the seltzer water display. Confused, my friends asked me why the hell I was staring at the bottles of bubbles. Of course, I had tell them why: because of Daddy!

Daddy’s drink of choice was seltzer water. Why? I have no idea. I thought it was disgusting when I was younger, and I still think it is today. But, he LOVED it. He was always drinking it, and I was always making the mistake of taking a sip from his glass.

One hot day I vividly remember running into the house form the backyard after playing on our old rope swing. I was thirsty from playing in the sun. And by thirsty, I mean PARCHED, so I ran into the kitchen searching for the nearest cup. I saw a tall, teal, plastic cup (Sam knows the iconic ones I’m talking about) that was full of what I thought was regular water, so I gulped it down. BIG MISTAKE. It was as glass of seltzer water Daddy had left out! I spit it out immediately, getting a mixture of seltzer water and spit all over the kitchen table.

In the midst of my dramatic spitting/choking episode, Daddy came into the kitchen to get his seltzer water. He must have really confused when he saw it all over the table and his cup in my hands! I don’t think I ever drank form his cup again after that day, but you should try it! Maybe you’ll like it!