daddy.jack

he was my dad for 19 years and 2 days.

my father.in.law. daddy.jack.

that was the name he gave me to call him. 

after i married his son.

he lived a full life.  

sang beautifully.  laughed happily.  and loved much.

and isn't that what it's all about. 

loving much, laughing, and singing 

while we're alive, even in the midst of heartache

in this fragile, broken, beautiful world.

many times he would say to me - on my way out the door with gene and the kids,

"take care of each other."

he was an artist at heart and excellent at drawing

and often gave the grandkids tips.

one of our littles remembered grandpa teaching her how to draw "wilber", 

the squirrel who lived in the backyard.

she drew him a picture for his last day on earth.

he loved it.  and it stayed with him.

daddy.jack. a tenor. also sang about hope and lived it.

in his later years he could be found singing to the clerks at the grocery checkout lane

and putting smiles and blushes on people's faces.

daddy.jack also loved jokes and random facts about anything and everything.

one of our littles, who loves random facts and jokes, too - 

found one a few days before daddy.jack left us - that said, 

"3 out of the first 5 presidents died on July 4th".

daddy.jack decided to join them on that day.

we will miss you.so much.

but know we'll meet again.

dearest daddy.jack.

till then. we'll

"take care of each other."