Getting older bites...but it's better than the alternative!

This week my mother turned 75 years old. Wow! It’s not like she’s the first person to ever turn 75, its just realizing how time quickly passes by. She’s quite an awesome mom, too. Mothering 10 children, not to mention all the neighborhood kids she cared for, taking care of her Dad and Mother and then later in life, our own Father. And still, at 75, going like the everlasting “Energizer Bunny”. I called her the night before her birthday and you know what her plans were in the morning? On the morning of her 75th birthday, she was going to be driving over to the Senior Center and making breakfast for 25 seniors. They rave about her desserts and other items she brings in to share so getting her to make them a breakfast was a real treat, indeed. That’s just the kind of person my mother has always been, taking care of and doing for others. That’s also why she is and has always been my role model.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a long way from being like my mother. She will certainly be “sainted” in her glory days. It’s just my goal to be more like her. When my mother turned 57, we were able to give her a really cool birthday present, a grand daughter. Abigail was born 2 weeks late, 9 lb. 10 oz, and given a middle name she shares with her grandmother. Man, did this really change our lives. If you have trouble with math, that would make Abby 18 years old this week too. Yeah, we still can’t believe it.
We spent a lot of time while she was growing up making some great memories. Playing in the back yard with the cocker spaniels, riding tricycles with her Aunt Joyce, playing “chase” with Grandpa Ray, trips to see the Cardinals play, catching her first fish at the lake on Springfield Ave, dance classes, vacations with cousins, “camping out”, playing dress-up, all the things that make growing up fun. Some of my favorite memories will always be spending time with Ab doing things she knew I liked. I loved watching her play softball. She could hit with the best of them and field her positions better than most that played the game. I may sound biased but I played and coached many years and saw lots of talent. She’s a natural playing softball. I also enjoyed teaching Abby to shoot and taking her out hunting with me. I like to think she enjoyed it too. One of my favorite memories was teaching Abby to drive and letting her drive my truck before she was of age. Her mother would have stroked out if she knew…wait..oh well. She’ll get over it.
As many of you know, I take a trip every summer to a place that is very special to me. It’s a outdoorsman’s paradise. A fishing retreat in northern Ontario that can only be reached by float plane or boat. You can’t drive to this lake and fish on the banks. I’ve been blessed to have gone for the last 12 years, but a few years ago it was a pretty special trip. We were 2 weeks from going north and one of the guys backed out of the trip. After checking with all my friends and friends of friends, we couldn’t find a replacement. So, I decided to take Abby north so we had an even amount of fishermen.

There was a slight problem; Abby had never fished for walleye and northern pike before. I took her to the local sporting goods dealers and got her all geared up. Once we got on the island, I spent the first half-day and the second day teaching her “the ropes” to landing walleye. Low and behold, she spent the week catching lots of fish, getting her summer reading done for school, and getting to know some of dad’s friends better than she really wanted too. We had met a group of guys there from Michigan. One of them had been there before; the other 5 it was their first time too. By the end of the week, Abby had caught more walleye by herself than the 6 guys from Michigan did altogether. Man, was I really proud of her.
Those are just a few of the memories that we’ve been lucky to share. In a couple months Abby will be graduating from high school and a couple months after that, starting college at Bowling Green State University. She’s got a whole brand new chapter of life ahead and we’re excited for her. It’s my hope that as she grows older these memories will be as special to her as they are to me. And when she thinks of them as I know she will, they will bring a smile to her face. The same smile that melted my heart 18 years ago and still does today. That’s the view from my stand!