This dashing gentleman is my Papaw and this still-frame is a glimpse into our relationship, he's always imparting knowledge and holding my hand down paths of uncommon thought. In this photo we're making our coveted Homemade Peach Ice Cream in the front lawn of his rural home, using freshly picked peaches from his garden and our family recipe... our summertime tradition.
Papaw is an extraordinary man of virtue, faith, patience, intelligence, Truth, and compassion. Look at the picture again, do you see the cloud of knowledge that envelopes him? From this glimpse in time, do you see how he is imparting decades of experience through his childish grin and flat-palm of wisdom? Papaw's large, weathered hands would narrate stories of redemption while simultaneously improving/fixing every mechanical thing within a 10 mile radius!
For instance, one day we were incrementally reconstructing his 1955 Honda Accord (according to his engineering expertise) while he was recalling the story of Gomer and Hosea and how God's tender mercies, unending love, and ultimate forgiveness are constantly waiting for us. Now picture this. Here I am, a bony kneed, bright eyed six year old, clinging to his every word and storing his every movement into my mental vault of unforgettable information. I distinctly remember standing at his right hip, leaning over just like him, peering under the hood, and nodding as his words swayed from Biblical Truths to expositional blurbs about mechanics.
I'd clutch the piston ring I was cleaning and he'd move his weighty, loving glance from the car to the work I was doing and tell me I was doing a great job. He'd even ask me what I thought that part did, then he'd teach me how and why it worked. Just as the peach ice cream picture portrays, my Papaw works with tenderness, passion and purpose in everything he does.
I know this because I got to be his little shadow for years. However, he never placed me behind him, and other than trying to follow in his long strides, I was always beside him. There is a depth and presence to him, even in the simple act of nurturing his peach and apple trees, he could reveal the complex intricacies of life by unassumingly braiding life lessons into every action. Papaw has an incredible knack for teaching and dispelling his wisdom by taking riducoulously complex ideas and displaying them in palatable, processable ways... even for a six year old.
I adore my Papaw. I think it's the anticipation of experiencing Papaw's unfathomable love and captivating lessons that causes my heart to pump with wild delight each time I turn onto his driveway and hear the crackles and pops of shifting gravel beneath my car. I know that as soon as I exit my car, my thought patterns and belief systems will be challenged to shift and adjust, just as the gravel had only moments ago. Even at twenty years old, I still run to the garage door, skip up the steps, and tear through the kitchen to meet their warm embrace.
I truly love them.
When does my time come to meet this man? .... almost 2 years waiting ....
.... in person. you know skype doesn't give me the full effect. He holds your mamaw's hand dearly and gently too ... sooooo cute.
3.5- 4 day wkend in mid-Sept = trip to IN to visit those dear to my heart in IN and MI... you should join me!!
ohhhh annnnnd one day when I was over at his house this summer and I said, "Papaw will you sit down with me tonight and teach me what you know? I want to record it." He agreed and now I have hours upon hours of wisdom stored on my Mac! holler :]
yes ... you told me about that and then called me right after saying that you thought that your computer lost all the footage ... glad you found it and it is accessable.