ON FATHER’S DAY
Happy Father’s Day to all of the dads in the world and all the Dads in Heaven, especially my own dad, Jacob William Walters, aka J.W. or Walt.
My dad was born on a tenant farm, the last of 7 children, and grew up in the Great Depression. The year before he died, we visited the site of his birth.
He served in WWII in the South Pacific, a Marine fighting on Guadalcanal, Okinawa, Peleliu, and much more. He almost died from typhus at one point. He suffered for the rest of his life from shellshock, or what we now call PTSD. He also became hard of hearing and amazingly, learned to read lips!
Dad went to work for Southwestern Bell after the war as a lineman and then as an installer/repairman for 39 years. He was known in his quiet way for his skill, willingness to help, and dependability. In his later years, he flipped houses. He would buy them cheaply, Mom would design them, and then Dad would renovate them. He taught himself plumbing, electricity, whatever, in the process! I was always so proud of his craftsmanship!
The folks’ most important goal was to always keep the family together so we moved with Dad 18 times in 6 years in our trailers. The biggest move was when we finally settled in our small hometown. One of the happiest memories was moving into our own home. Dad and Mom did all the finishing work, and us kids helped out! We did everything together as a family. This was the cornerstone of Dad’s life. Probably the biggest turning point in our family was in joining the local Christian Church (DOC). We were baptized together. Dad at 6’2″, as he was immersed, was dropped by the shorter minister!! For the rest of his life, Jesus was Dad’s Main Man! The tears streamed down his cheeks one day as I realized this in amazement! As he was dying, he said he was not afraid because Jesus was with him.
One of Dad’s greatest joys was traveling. He even built a little travel trailer when us kids were young. Mom and he spent some of their happiest years in retirement traveling, and their winters in AZ. They made friends from all over the US. On his 70th birthday, Dad stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon in total awe. It was one of our happiest family trips.
These are just a few of the highlights of his life.
I often see his laughing, joyous face painted across the AZ sky which he loved, and in my tears of grief, I am happy!!
Blessings,
Carolyn Q
