Dad had a lot to be proud about, but one of the things he was most proud of was his Irish heritage. I can't tell you how many times I have heard to story of his grandparents coming over from Ireland. His grandfather was a maintenance man at A&P and one day, when he was cleaning out a room, he came across a stack of bonds that were worth a fortune. Instead of keeping them, he turned them in to the company. As a reward for his honesty, A&P bought him a truck to start his own freight company, which he turned into a multi-million dollar company. A true American story. (Too bad we never saw any of it! LOL!)
Dad also loved to sing Irish songs, which he taught to all of us. My Wild Irish Rose, When Irish Eyes Are Smiling, Tora Lora Lora - to name a few. I can still hear his baritone voice. At night Seth likes for me to sing to him as he falls asleep (he doesn't yet know the meaning of tone deaf) and I often include these tunes in the repertoire.
Dad would cook corned beef every year on St. Patrick's Day. Most years it was edible and the house didn't catch on fire. (That's another story that I'll let Dan tell another time!)
I always imagined that someday we'd all take a big family trip to Ireland to kiss the Blarney Stone, but it just didn't happen. I guess time ran out. But as Seth marches in his St. Patrick's Day parade in school, Dad will be on my mind. Maybe I'll even toast him with a pint.
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