Ah, St Valentine’s Day today. Everything is all red and chocolate covered out there like the happening of an overnight snow fall. I didn’t sleep well last night, I was tossing and turning and kept thinking about writing this post. Hmm. I don’t usually labor so.

On this Valentine’s Day I think of my folks, Fred and Jean, who had a ritual of kissing before sitting down to a meal and then pray and eat. And they would sit down to a meal because that was a big ritual that they followed religiously. That was important back then to sit down with the family and guests and I still think it is but maybe that is old fashioned. But anyway I think that was all affection in different forms.

Fred’s sister Esther was unmarried and was at our house at least once a week. She loved Jean’s good home cooking usually in the German or Polish realm. I remember Mom heating up dinner plates in the oven so the food would be hotter when she served us, just an extra little touch.

But I would spend all day with Aunt Esther working on my stamp collection or playing games or reading books. She would bring little treats: an ice cream sandwich, or Ovaltine or scotch tape. I don’t remember kissing but we must have but she did laugh at my jokes which seemed big. Ah, but the most important thing was that we loved to play Cootie together. Yeh, Cootie, we must have played a million games. This I now realize is all affection whether kisses are remembered or not.

Back when I was a teenager I was lucky enough to have a great second Mom and Dad who happened to be the parents of my best friend. They are all gone now including my best friend. But they were a great stabilizing force for me and I miss them so. Mel and Mabel both grew up on farms, Mel from northwest Iowa and Mabel from just down the road in our northwest New York. Somehow the Navy brought Mel east to meet his future wife. Mel worked as a brakeman or fireman on the railroad. They had three children together and somehow had the energy to semi adopt me. Later in Mabel’s life she came down with cancer while Mel was in a wheelchair. I had the opportunity to drive Mel around in his special van and one day I took him to the hospital to see Mabel, the last time I saw Mabel. But they had a nice visit and when we got ready to go Mel had me maneuver his wheel chair over to to bedside to kiss Mabel on the lips. It was so beautiful and I felt like I was a part of it being sort of the engineer of it all.

Well, I hope this was all worth my lack of sleep. I don’t know what Rebecca and I are going to do, maybe something exciting and risqué like ordering a pizza! Ah, life goes on.

engineering loves, Felipé.