Saturday, June 29, 2024
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One of the biggest memories in my mind from childhood will always be going to Aunt Barbara's and Uncle Bob's house to go swimming in their giant pool. Every summer for as long as I can remember I would wait for school to end to be able to go and swim in the pool. Uncle Bob without fail always had the pool up and ready to go no matter what. Aunt Barbara would always have fruit and snacks for when we got out from swimming. I do not think either of them knew just how amazing those summers were for a little kid but without a doubt it was the highlight of my summer every year. My Uncle Bob was the most quiet, gentle, humble, and friendliest person I have ever met. In all my life I have never heard him raise his voice He was also extremely funny. One of my most special memories is when he had shown me a small baby frog that was trapped in the filter basket of the pool. I was in awe of it (I was 6 or7 at the time) and I remember he picked it up and I was shocked! He said " Don't be afraid Lynnie he cant hurt you." Then we walked over to the bushes and he let it go and I was thinking "He is so brave!!! He touched the frog!!!Lol He was always such a kind man and was always happy to see you even when he would just get home from work and you were in his pool jumping around like a maniac, screaming and laughing like crazy. I remember when we went on a trip to South Carolina with Aunt Carol and Uncle Mike. Again I was very young. Uncle Mike wanted to go catch crabs at night at the beach. I thought this was going to be fun. So the kids went along. I thought it was going to be great because I would see crabs. Until they shined a light on them and there was a million on the beach which looked like thousands of spiders!! I started to cry and Uncle Bob picked me up and carried me back to the house because I was terrified to touch the ground. He even saved me from being eaten by an alligator on that trip. They were fishing in a pond and an alligator came out of the pond and I just remember being picked up sideways and him running like the wind hanging onto me while Uncle Mike was trying to save his fishing poles! Hearing him and Uncle Mike tell that story used to be a highlight for me because they were hysterical. There are so many more memories and great times that he is a part of but my most grateful memory is that in the last couple of years I have been able to bring my own children to their house and they have enjoyed swimming in "Uncle Bob's Pool." They have been given snacks after swimming by Aunt Barbara and my children have been able to experience the magic of that pool and the two people who have had such a positive impact on their mom. I am so happy that they got to have conversations with him and got to know him. I wonder now if he would remember our frog and if he would laugh that I actually capture them with my own kids and put them in our pond. It is so funny how life comes full circle. I am going to miss the man who was to me a silent beacon of sunshine and stability for a little kid who was always nervous and afraid of her own shadow. But in that backyard I knew I was safe and protected. I knew he made that pool so great for us. I know he is with God in heaven making my dad, my brother in law Tom and my Uncle Mike laugh like crazy and I am sure he is somewhere there saving little frogs and showing the baby angels not to be scared. I am so grateful God did not let him suffer and that he is with Grandma Cody his mom who he loved so much. It will be hard to let go of such a light but I know when its time to go home to heaven he will be there ready to light the path and maybe just maybe catch a few frogs with me.
