One of my dad's all time loves was the water. Put him in a boat and he was happy. As a young boy the lure of the Irondequoit Bay was more than he could resist. Almost any punishment was worth a day by the water. As a teen, Dad and his friends built a pontoon boat but unfortunately had to leave it marooned in the creek at a nearby park. When they returned for their vessel the following day, they found it had been vandalized by pirates. (Or is that pirated by vandals?)
A good many of Dad's drawings were of ships. Each rendition included sails and riggings and all the stuff that a little girl would never remember. I was always somewhat enchanted by his drawings, but never felt the lure of the sea. Being in a boat for more than half an hour left me feeling queasy and my best bet was to find a place to lay down and close my eyes.
When he came of age Dad joined the naval reserves and found himself on a ship headed for Cuba. Somewhere mid-trip the ship's doctor noticed Dad's polio stricken left leg and threatened to ship him home at the next port. Not to be outdone, Dad talked to someone in higher authority and finished his tour without incident.
So anyway, this morning our pastor happened to mention in his message a ship called the "Flying Cloud". (He grew up in Philadelphia by the river and across from a shipyard.) I missed most of what he said as I was on my way out to the ladies' room, but it sparked an interest and I checked out Dad's drawings once again. I looked for pictures online too and found this. I think Dad did a pretty good job with his drawings.
One of my dad's all time loves was the water. Put him in a boat and he was happy. As a young boy the lure of the Irondequoit Bay was more than he could resist. Almost any punishment was worth a day by the water. As a teen, Dad and his friends built a pontoon boat but unfortunately had to leave it marooned in the creek at a nearby park. When they returned for their vessel the following day, they found it had been vandalized by pirates. (Or is that pirated by vandals?)
A good many of Dad's drawings were of ships. Each rendition included sails and riggings and all the stuff that a little girl would never remember. I was always somewhat enchanted by his drawings, but never felt the lure of the sea. Being in a boat for more than half an hour left me feeling queasy and my best bet was to find a place to lay down and close my eyes.
When he came of age Dad joined the naval reserves and found himself on a ship headed for Cuba. Somewhere mid-trip the ship's doctor noticed Dad's polio stricken left leg and threatened to ship him home at the next port. Not to be outdone, Dad talked to someone in higher authority and finished his tour without incident.
So anyway, this morning our pastor happened to mention in his message a ship called the "Flying Cloud". (He grew up in Philadelphia by the river and across from a shipyard.) I missed most of what he said as I was on my way out to the ladies' room, but it sparked an interest and I checked out Dad's drawings once again. I looked for pictures online too and found this. I think Dad did a pretty good job with his drawings.
He was awesome! How neat to find a picture of The Flying Cloud to compare with Dad's rendition.
ReplyDeleteI sure do miss him when I hear him sing. I want him to reach out and give me a hug and a kiss (and me him) because he seems so close...but those days are gone. Sorry for the tears today.
What a nice post this one is. I enjoyed reading about the boats, water and your dad.
ReplyDeleteThe Wheel bug bite injects a substance that turns meat into liquid that the bug can suck out of you and the pain lasts for months. I have no idea if it could be a Wheel Bug but it might have been.
Rachel, it's okay. The songs make me teary too sometimes, but I take them as a hug and enjoy the closeness.
ReplyDeleteAbe, maybe it was a tiger beetle that got me.