December 25, 2010. Father and Son

I don't celebrate Christmas. So I took the bus into the CIty to visit my mother, who like me does not celebrate Christmas.

The Buses and the street of the City are empty. It gave me a lonely feeling. I enjoy the crowds in the City. As I approached my Mom's home, I saw an old Schwinn Suburban.



As I've said before, my dad sold Schwinns. He might have been the only Jew to have a Schwinn franchise. Schwinn was not exactly friendly to the Jews.



The Suburban was the same frame as the Varsity, which was the best selling bike in the world in the late sixties to early seventies. The differences being that the Surburban had 5 speeds, the Varsity 10, and the Suburban had the traditional saddle and handle bars. This Bike has not been manufactured for 30 years.



I've said this before, although I'm not particularly spiritual, but I like to think that when I see an old Schwinn, my Dad is saying hello to me. It immediately changed my mood.



My Dad was a special man. My Brother, Sister and I each had unique and very fulfulling relationships with him. I was saddened by his death, yet in a strange way was very happy to have such a man for my father.



He knew of my condition, before he died. At first I thought of concealing it, knowing that it made him feel worse than it made me feel, But such a thing was impossible. We all go through life with relationships that succeed and those that fail. I couldn't imagine how a relationship, between a father and son, could have been better than mine.