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I went fishing with my Dad. He bought the poles, worms, hooks. We
spent hours hanging out and it was great. We caught no fish, but I
had the greatest catch of all, an afternoon with my Dad. I'll always
remember you and that day. STEPHEN ELDRIDGE
I remember my sisters and I wanting to make brownies when we were younger while my parents were out. We made them successfully. Then we wanted to make icing for them, of course. The sweeter the better right?
We had a general idea of what to use, but didn't know what specific ingredients were needed. We added green food coloring and apparently cream of tartar. The "off" taste soaked into the brownies and ruined the whole batch. We still laugh about "the green brownies" to this day. ERIN
My father was a body and fender repairman, a garage owner. Each day he came home at lunchtime for thirty minutes. I waited for him on the corner every day and each day, he had something in his pocket for me, something small.
He would bring me magnets and show me on the kitchen table how they worked. He'd bring nuts and bolts and show me how I could make sculptures from anything. He started me a collection of hood ornaments and brought me one of his old toolboxes to keep them in. I learned all about makes of cars from identifying hood ornaments.
It's the small things, you know? It was the highlight of my day, my dad coming home for lunch. He made it so much fun that I ate that stupid cream of vegetable soup without a complaint. MANNEQUIN
This year for Christmas I made my parents a book about their grandchildren. I called all 7 and asked them questions. Ex. favorite ice cream, color, what they like best about grandma/pa... It was so sweet. My parents as well as my sisters and brother loved it. ANN
My Daddy Oscar passed away when I was pretty young but I have a wonderful memory of sitting on his knee as he drank his morning coffee. While perched there I asked to taste it and he lovingly poured some into a saucer and we both blew on it until it cooled off. I felt like such a big boy after taking that first sip with my grandfather. WRSJ
I gave my grandmother a "Between Me and You journal" and she gave it back to me at Christmas this year. My grandmother is painfully quiet and rarely shares stories about life. The journal really was amazing - the perfect gift for her. My dad says she's always been great about writing. She filled it with stories I had never heard, as well as pictures I had never seen! I was so thankful to be able to gain this glimpse into her life. LIZ
Recently I gave one of your father journals to my daughter and her dad to use as he was dying. They appreciated having some conversation starters so he could share his memories with her even though he wasn't able to write anything down. Thanks. SAMANTHA
I bought the "Grandpa" journal back in June as a Father's Day present for my grandfather. He's a quiet, unassuming man so I thought it would be an interesting opportunity to learn a little about him, and in the process, my family and my history.
The book sat on a shelf, unopened, for six months. We never found time to sit down and to be honest, I was afraid that either my grandfather or I would feel awkward having such a personal conversation after over two decades of cordiality. I was also somewhat afraid that opening up my heart to my grandfather's experiences would lead to a seismic shift in my own perceptions, and I didn't know if I was quite ready for that.
Finally, around Christmas time, I came to visit my grandparents and noticed my grandfather looked older than ever. I realized that, perhaps morbidly, I didn't want to be sitting at his funeral with an untouched opportunity to know him. So I picked up the journal and decided what better day to start fresh with my grandfather than on New Years?
We started off at the kitchen counter, me asking him about his siblings and his childhood. Slowly but surely, everyone who was at his house that day started to accumulate around us. The realization dawned on us all that we didn't know a thing about the man who sat peacefully at the head of every table, the man whose hands built the houses that sheltered us, the man whose legs brought his family to a new country.
We sat and talked for eight hours that day - the most I have ever spoken to my grandfather before in my life. I learned exactly how proud we should all be of him, how far he came, how much he's endured. And I learned that this man was once my age, once had idealism and a rebellious streak. I learned things about him that will make my children beam.
I'm almost afraid to re-open the book now; I'm worried that my reading the words on the page will dull the memory of the interview I did on that day. It was such an intense experience for my whole family - I've ordered books for everyone now (including my grandmother, who spent the day of the interview hovering and chiming in and just dying to tell her own story) - and I cried so hard that day thinking that it took me 26 years to ask. ANGELA
When my youngest sister in law was born, my father in law made a video of all the extended family and friends wishing her a happy 18th birthday. She is 13 now. Everyone is looking forward to watching it in 5 years, although it will be bittersweet since some family members are no longer with us. COOKIERT
As a gift one valentines day, I bought a jar and decorated with pink paint and stickers. Then I cut out 365 heart shaped pieces of pink paper. On the paper, I wrote one thing that I loved about my hubby. I wrote down and another 363, and the last one was taped on the bottom and it said "because you are you!"
He was only supposed to read one a day, but ended up reading all of them within a week. HANNAH
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