Friday, August 31, 2007

"Papa with no legs"


My great nephew, Gaege, called my Father, "Papa with no legs". I think that was to distinguish him from his "Papa with a hat" and any other people known to him that went by the name of Papa. This title has given me great cause to think about giving someone such a shocking name. I guess too, because it describes what Dad didn't have, and not what he did. Could he have been called be called:
Papa with distinction
Papa with a carpenters hands
Papa with a sideways grin
Papa with dignity
Papa with determination
Papa with bravery
Papa the farmer's son
Papa the "Insurance Man"
Papa with Tennessee Walkers
Papa with Nana
Papa with Christmas Spirit
Papa the fix-it Man
Papa the father to Betty, Merry, Judy and Hugh
Papa with the steam engine
Papa with a workshop
Papa with frog gigs
Papa the good neighbor
or maybe
Papa the very handsome Man?

You get my point! There wasn't a lot that Papa wasn't, to those that loved him. He was the best he could be, and never gave up, even in his last three years, when he had no legs...
Wow, I guess Gaege was right! That name gave Papa something to stand up to, and he did, with great dignity and courage. Gaege didn't see someone who was impaired by a disability nor was he embarrassed by it. He really saw Papa as he was, and was as proud as the rest of us were, of "Papa with no legs".

What a great guy, that Papa!

Are you smiling yet?







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4 comments:

juju said...

Oh yes, I"m smiling!! That precious little boy, was in a conversation about character and of course, I used Papa as a great example of tall in heart and character even tho he had no legs. He quickly reminded me that he ( Gaege) might be short, but he had a TALL heart. Again, we see that living by example goes on from generation to generation. Thanks, Dad for teaching each os how to stand tall when you can't even stand. . Gaege, Keep growing that heart-

Queenie said...

`````````` ````````
OH YES! through all these tears!
When I saw the picture of myself at the kitchen table I saw the
calander on the wall. The next time
`````` I went into he kitchen I looked at that ````calander It was a 2005 calander and``````the 8th was circled in black, I had written `````"Oh how I love you my precious husband. `````` ``I am like Kate I love these
pictures ready for the archives.I think the last pix of Dad at the
bottom of your blog was made at
prayer meeting. Oh how I love him.

``` ````` `````

juju said...

Love it Aubt Merry! Geage sure has a way with words and Papa sure had a way of dealing with what he was given or even taken away.
Love you -Abby

Family said...

To all...we are all in agreement, Geage is pretty special and Papa was our hero!

Thank you for your comments. It means a lot to this blogger when you like my post enough to say so...it's the small things in life that sometimes makes us the happiest.

Kisses.