Father's Day

I reflected today on Father’s Day that it is 18 years since my Dad died but there are many times since he left us that I take actions or make decisions based on his advice. My Dad was born in 1919 in Oban and he worked for the GPO all his life, rising through the ranks to be a Head Postmaster. He also served in WWII  in Italy and North Africa in the Signals Core and (amongst other events) used to recall Vesuvius erupting in 1943 and taking part in a performance of Aida in Naples Opera House (they used the British Army as extras). 

He had much more time to spend with me as a kid than he had with my brother and sister (15 and 12 years older than me) when he had two jobs for much of the time and I recall happy evenings and weekends doing airfix models, painting soldiers and having lovely long walks in the park with our good friends.. It was when I left home and went to work for BT that he would send me letters with useful cuttings about pensions and interest rates (in those days interest rates were worth talking about!) and even now if I have to make a money based decision I think about what he would have done. 

I phoned home every day from the day I left and Mum, Dad and I would have hilarious 3 way conversations with them on hands free and me updating them on life in the Big Smoke! When I came home for a visit he would make sure my favourite cakes were in the house and he always polished my shoes so I left with them gleaming.

He loved slapstick humour and would fall about laughing at “Tom and Jerry” and he would get very emotional if a Scottish team or athlete did well at a sporting event. I can hear his laugh and his whistle if I shut my eyes. When he died and Mum had to tell all the shop keepers they all talked about his lovely manners and what a gentleman he was. I was looking for a photo to illustrate this and came across this one of him and Mum looking all dolled up for a function.