Monday, February 2, 2015

Sweaters Knit from Memories

The heather gray yarn, suede elbow patches, and shawl collar
of my sweater always remind me of him.
Maybe because when I call him to mind the only thing I can envision
is a heathered, shawl collared sweater
before the pictures from the albums start pouring into my brain.
Whether or not I ever saw him wear one I do not know.
I know he did at some point.
I know because my dad thinks of him every time he wears his own shawl collared sweater.
It is an odd thing when you have memories of a person that you barely remember.

Today would have been my grandpa's 100th birthday.
He has been gone for almost a quarter of a decade
and yet this day still carries such a bittersweet tone for me.
Every February 2nd I am flooded by memories of him.
Memories to which I have no claim, 
but are constructions of stories and pictures shared by the true owners.
Each year I celebrate and hold onto those happy tales a little tighter 
as my own memories of him fade.

I am so grateful for the legacy he left us;
for the pride I share in knowing that he was the mind behind hundreds of patents;
for his example of a hard working, dedicated, loving husband and father;
for the memories of him we all share;
for his love for me I see each time I see his picture;
for this sweater that makes me feel like I am wearing his.





1 comment:

Thank you for stopping by. I love reading your thoughts! I respond mostly by e-mail so make sure you're not a no reply blogger!

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