Photos

Dear Dan,

My new office looks nice. The guys from OPP came and hung some of your photos for me. The truck photos have been very popular with people stopping by. It's funny -- some of the reactions -- since those are not girly photos. I also have the tri-fold with one additional photo sitting on my file cabinet. The frog at the preserve in Costa Rica and the carousel horse with the Eiffel Tower are on the bookcase. Above that are two more of your photos: the green door and the lion door knocker from The Dom. I also have the digital frame on my desk. It scrolls through a lot of the photos you took.

I'm thinking about making a print of Western Auto and framing that for in here too. I saved a few others for home -- like the women in the store window. I think I might also make a print of the stockings in Amsterdam for home as well.

I can keep you around me all the time. These photos make me smile.

Birthdays

Dear Dan,

Birthdays have always been difficult for me. For various reasons. But now that you're gone birthdays are much worse. No matter who forgot my birthday, you always remembered. You always sent a funny card and followed it up with a phone call. The last several years, of course, there's no call and no card.

I miss you.

I love you Dan.

Spread over years

Dear Dan,

There are a couple memories I have of you that developed over years. One is of a phone call in the night.

Dad was out of town (so when wasn't he?) and had not called that evening as he should have done. Mom was antsy. I think Dad might have been in Nam. That same evening I was expecting a call from Kathy but it never came.

Later that night while we were asleep, the phone rang. In my dream I heard mom saying it was for me. I woke up yelling "OK!" When I realize I had been dreaming, I laid awake listening. Your room was across the hall and I expected you to make some comment about my silliness. Nothing.

The next morning there was still no comment and I soon forgot about series of events.

That is until one Christmas after Dad died. We were sitting and talking about Dad's travels, especially during wartime. Mom brought up how he always called at the same time in the evening. There were a couple of times when he couldn't and those times made her very tense.

I told about that one call I remembered. You looked at me and said "That was you??" Apparently you woke from a sound sleep hearing "OK!!" and then heard nothing after that. You thought it was some part of your imagination that woke you up so you just giggled to yourself and went back to sleep.