I
have to say, over the years I have received some interesting treasures as gifts
for Father’s Day. That’s just the joy of
having three boys. I have displayed some
of their artwork on the fridge, as one might expect. I have ingested some of their culinarily
creative marvels expertise. Hey, it’s
hard to beat green eggs and ham. This
year, however, the gifts truly appealed to my inner child, which is not really
so “inner” much of the time.
So
first … the FaceBook photos. That’s what
I saw early in the morning. The one with
me and Noa when I presented her with a baseball bat at her three-year-old
birthday party, bestowing upon her a symbol of the Vaughan “Love for baseball”
legacy. And the one April found amongst
her wedding photos of me dancing, displaying some of the more intricate moves
that Nathan has apparently managed to incorporate into his own repertoire. Sigh.
It’s nice to see the youth of tomorrow truly appreciating the finer
points of life – baseball and “creative” dance moves.
The
first gift came from middle child Josh. Now
I’m not even counting the fact that he let us tag along with them on their trip
to DisneyWorld earlier in the year. That
pretty much counts for all gifts for some time to come. But we were together at a funeral last
weekend, and he saw an opportunity to be especially creative. He took us out to eat (I know, that doesn’t sound very creative, but the secret was in the
“where” this time). He took us out
to eat … at Pancho’s. Yep, that all-time
favorite of my pre-marriage college days, early, struggling, not-much-money
newlywed days, and subsequently his youth.
With three boys it was hard to find a place that could satisfy all of
them to the extent that they left feeling full.
All-you-can-eat Pancho’s did just that.
And for Josh that always meant trying to break his record – fifteen
tamales. Pretty impressive number, but
tamales is all he ever ordered. Well, up
until he discovered that he liked their rice.
He didn’t go for a new record this time, but he was absolutely giddy to
be there. See, it was his Father’s Day
meal from his family as well. And his
boys really enjoyed themselves. Raising
a flog to get service was delightful.
They shoveled down a few of the soft tortillas (well, Luke shoveled down whatever was in front of him and said, “I like
dis”). And all three of them were
totally sold when they realized there was free ice cream cones. Thank you Josh, for passing down the Pancho’s
legacy.
The
next gift came from Kel. And it was a
real blast from the past for me. He
presented me with a doll. Now, wait a
minute. This was not a leftover baby doll
that young Noa had grown tired of. This
was like no doll I have ever seen before.
He handed it to me and I actually did a double-take. There before me was none other than … Mr.
Mxyzptlk. That’s right.
The imp from another dimension who was Superman’s most annoying enemy,
and hence my absolute favorite villain of all time. The only way to get rid of him was to trick
him into saying his name backwards. It’s
hard enough to say his name frontwards, but backwards? Kltpzyxm.
Now that’s some great literature right there. Of course I probably won’t take it out of the
packaging, but it is certainly a treasure to be admired. The Superman legacy (and hence, the superiority
of the DC universe) once again triumphs.
Thank you, Kel.
Nathan
was on shift Father’s Day, so he and Cailyn came over the next day for
lunch. And what a gift they did bear
(along with the hamburger buns, of course).
They made a find of all finds, a true nod to the Vaughan legacy of
passing on … “interesting” gifts. Now I’ll
say up front that it came with a disclaimer.
Apparently April wanted no part of being included in the selection and
presentation of this gift. Hence the
FaceBook post exalting my dance floor prowess.
But Cailyn was right there and behind it all the way, so the legacy lives
on. Oh, but the gift itself? It was the Toilet Fishing Game. A masterful development in the realm of home
decorating that is beautiful as well as practical. Included in the kit was a gorgeous blue floor
mat, the color of the ocean (somewhere).
It was unmistakably cut to fit perfectly right in front of the toilet. Then there were “Seven plastic fish and Sea
Life” (and even a seahorse) with tiny magnets embedded in their mouths. There was of course a fishing pole, about the
size of a ruler, with a reel and line and everything. The hook was another magnet, designed to snag
the fish as the floated unsuspectingly in the field of blue. And then the best of the best. A door hanger that said “Do Not Disturb.” For once you get started with this game, you
must carry it through to the end. Cailyn and I set it up (on the kitchen floor, not the bathroom … yet) and played for a
while. She is already better at it than
I am. But the important thing is, she
saw the potential in such a masterful gift and had the courage to follow
through. Thanks, Nathan. That is a great legacy to pass on. Sniff.
Well,
there you have it. A trip to Pancho’s followed
by a Mr. Mxyzptlk doll to play with while I sit on the toilet waiting for the fish
to bite. It just doesn’t get any better
than that.
Romans
12:4-5 says, “Just as each of us has one
body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so
in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the
others.”
Father,
thank you for my boys and for the families that they have brought into my
life. And thank you for the spiritual
legacy they are passing down to their children as well. Amen.
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