Questions for My Hero

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Questions for My Hero

February 10, 2013 by dorannrule

Daily Prompt – Childhood Revisited

Sure, you turned out pretty good, but is there anything you wish had been different about your childhood?

I did turn out pretty good “if I do say so myself.” That was in spite of being a child of a May-December marriage with a father who was 55 when I was born and 80 when my son (his grandson) was born. When he died I was a new mother of 24. Numbers are important when you look back to childhood.

When I was a child, my Dad was simply my hero. He was stronger and more handsome than any other man I knew. He was more colorful too because he was Hungarian and he had a grand accent. He was an intensely proud man, and I believed he was the smartest man on earth. He could add long lists of figures in his head and he said he had a photographic memory.

But did I see him growing older? Did I even imagine losing him?

Now I wish he had been a younger father for my little brother – so they could have bonded. I wish he had been a younger grandfather for my son – so they could have known each other well. Would they have played ball in the yard, gone fishing, wrestled on the lawn? What did he miss? And what did they miss?

I wish my Dad had been a younger father for me – so I could have asked him a million questions with time to get the answers. I just accepted him for what he was to me in childhood, and as I grew up and out, he grew older and older yet. And I never noticed until he was gone.

And I still have questions for my hero.

My Life As A Child – Daily Prompt (tenwordstory.wordpress.com)

Posted in Daily Prompt, Family | Tagged Child, Childhood, Daily Prompt, Family, Father, Parent | 17 Comments

17 Responses

on February 10, 2013 at 7:47 am Dianna

Oh, so true. My dad was 54 when I was born, and died when I was 8 months old. So I never knew him. That made for a difficult childhood….seeing my friends with their dads. But as I grew older, I realized there was so much more I missed by not ever knowing him.
Love this post!

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on February 10, 2013 at 8:07 am apronheadlilly

Thoughtful writing.

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on February 10, 2013 at 8:11 am katecrimmins

My dad was 45 when I was born and 55 when he died. I have a lot of the same feelings that you do. I wish he would have lived to be 90 so I could have had a life with him as an adult.

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on February 10, 2013 at 8:47 am Life With The Top Down

My dad was 57 when I was born….I know exactly what your mean.

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on February 10, 2013 at 11:12 am dorannrule

How similar we are Dianna! Only not ever knowing your Dad had to be tougher.

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on February 10, 2013 at 11:12 am dorannrule

🙂

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on February 10, 2013 at 11:14 am dorannrule

What a tragedy for you to lose your Dad when he was so young Kate.

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on February 10, 2013 at 11:15 am dorannrule

Interesting how so many of my favorite bloggers had older Dads. Is there a deeper meaning to this?

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on February 10, 2013 at 11:15 am dorannrule

Interesting how so many of my favorite bloggers had older Dads. Is there a deeper meaning to this?

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on February 10, 2013 at 12:07 pm determined34

Loved reading your post today 🙂 D 34

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on February 10, 2013 at 12:26 pm dorannrule

Thanks so much for stopping by and for your lovely comment. 🙂

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on February 10, 2013 at 1:32 pm determined34

That’s O.K 🙂 D34

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on February 11, 2013 at 7:40 am Kathy

This is really sweet. Thinking of you and your hero. Wonder how many things about people we don’t really notice until they’re gone…or until we’re old enough to contemplate it all.

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on February 11, 2013 at 10:01 am Mama's Empty Nest

My dad was definitely my hero too (he was in his 30’s when I was born) and I was blessed to have him in my life and my kids’ until he was 90. But my hubby’s dad was 57 when he was born. My husband says the same thing – he wished he had had a younger father. And even though he lived until he was 93, our kids didn’t get much of a chance to get to know him long enough.

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on February 11, 2013 at 4:31 pm dorannrule

Thanks mama. Getting to know grandparents is such a privilege and a gift really. You were so fortunate to have your Dad for so long.

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on February 14, 2013 at 1:34 pm morristownmemos by Ronnie Hammer

A touching and sad post..nothing can make up for those missed years.

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on February 15, 2013 at 5:52 am dorannrule

You are so right Ronnie – nothing can make up for the missed years. But, I have a feeling that ignorance is our gift to the young so they will not be overburdened. They should be free to concentrate on their own challenges and only later lament not knowing their ancestors.

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