After the party.

I remember dad working hard. But there was another side of dad that I do remember, his cigars. Mostly because mom complained about them. Dad loved to dance, some drinking, playing cards and enjoying friends. He also loved a cigar at the end of the day. I don't know when he started smoking cigars or how many he smoked, but it seems a fixture in his life.

He was a man of little needs. When it came to gift giving events it was always a mystery what to buy him. He was never impressed with material things, but the thought behind the gift was what he liked. So often in his older years we would give him a bottle of Five Star Brandy or a box of cigars. Even mom gave him cigars after a while. I know what you're thinking....she hated him smoking cigars.

This is where the story gets good. One year at Christmas, dad opened his present to find again, a box of cigars. It was from mom and there on dad's face was a smirk and his eyes seems to shimmer. It stopped the gift opening because this was unlike dad.

When ask what was happening, he smiled and said...I stopped smoking months ago. Everyone broke out laughing and mom, who had complained about his smoking, truly melted into the chair in which she was sitting.

As a family we laughed at this story for years. What fun memories to remember and share.

God Bless those who travel with me through my memories.

Carol