Like My Father · 17 December 2011
[Happy Birthday, Dad! I know it is a little early, but it is better than saying, Happy late, late Father’s Day (which is when I started writing this). I figured it was fitting to post a little tribute to you for your birthday. Hope you enjoy it.]
Sometimes we look in the mirror or think of something we just did and wonder, “When did I become my father (or mother)?” Sometimes it is a good thing and sometimes it is a bad thing. For me, it is usually a good realization that I am like both of my parents. The bad thing (not really bad, just relatively so) is that I have many more people in my house like my parents, especially, like my dad.
While Thing 1 is not biologically my child, he is uncannily like my dad. He thinks politically like him. They enjoy much of the same humor. And they enjoy watching sports. Some of my favorite mental images are of the two of them talking and laughing together. Whether it is about the weather, politics, sports, or any other subject, the two of them can just go on and on. Usually, spouting off some opinionated version of the truth and then laughing about it. Hopefully, they do not infect Thing 3 who is much like both of them. Unfortunately, I am sure it is just a matter of time before he joins in their fun.
Thing 2 is much like my father in that he can tell jokes of all sorts. And he has impeccable timing. Just like my dad and very unlike me (as I have already written). He also looks like my dad more than he looks like me. Consequently, I get a constant reminder of my dad when I see and hear Thing 2.
The most interesting reminder of my father is my wife, The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi. She is certainly like my mother, loving technology, crafts, and making itineraries. But she is much more like my father than I am. The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi is not the joke teller, but she is certainly full of mischief. Just like my dad.
I never really noticed the mischievous side of my wife until recently. Oh sure, she has always teased a bit, but she never really pulled pranks before. Recently, The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi has been knocking me over when I am standing on one leg or trying to distract me when I am concentrating. These are not only things that seem odd for her, they are more reminders of my dad even though for the most part, he is not so childish. It made me think that not only is my wife a little like my dad, she is becoming more like him all the time.
The realization that my wife is becoming more like my father all the time is really quite scary. It is nice to know that she is getting funnier (at least in her own mind), but at least one new trait has surfaced which is a bit eerie. My wife actually went to a garage sale. Of her own free will.
When we first got married, The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi thought it funny that my parents liked to go to garage sales. Truth be told, I thought it funny too. I have bought my share of second-hand items, so I usually stay away. Not because garage sales are bad. I just do not have good luck with items I buy at them. So I was glad that my wife was not a garage sale junkie like my parents.
Apparently, that phase has passed. The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi boggled my mind again when she announced that she had gone to not one, not two, but three garage sales. In one day! She was proud of her purchases and I think she was sad she had not discovered the joy of garage sale shopping earlier in life. She never ceases to amaze me. And now she is one more reminder in our household of my dad.
I am glad to have so many reminders of my dad and really of who I am and where I came from. I am glad that I am reminded of my dad whenever I look in the mirror or at any of the members of my family. It is just an odd realization that of all the people closest to me, my wife is the person most like my father.
© 2011 Michael T. Miyoshi
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