I have been putting off writing this post for a few weeks. The reason is, I don't think it will be good enough. How can I possibly write something that will adequately describe my dear late father-in-law? So instead of clever adjectives and flowery descriptions; I have decided to just describe some of the things that Gene did that endeared him to me.
Almost 21 years ago Kelly and I were married. Kelly's folks had built a beautiful new home so we decided to say our vows in their home. Upstairs, off the master bedroom was a gorgeous, huge bathroom suite. Karia, my maid of honor, and I were in that bathroom getting ready for the wedding. Karia was a Mary Kay rep; and she had tons of makeup. She brought it all up into the bathroom and set about to try to make me look beautiful for my big day. Gene came up to retrieve something from the bathroom. When we allowed him entrance, he stared with disbelief at the hundreds of tubes, brushes, compacts, etc strewn all over the counter. He looked at me gravely and said, "Nobody's that ugly". And he left.
One Valentine's Day Gene invited all of his sons and their spouses for an expensive dinner at an upscale restaurant. When we showed up, there were roses at each place setting for the ladies. During dinner, Gene had arranged for a barbershop quartet to serenade us.
When we were first married, Kelly and I lived very near Gene's office. Almost every day and sometimes more often, I'd see his truck driving past our house. He rarely stopped by, but was always making sure everything looked safe and sound at our home.
Kelly and I have a blended family. My children from my first marriage are all grown with children and have moved out of state. Yet every time we visited him, Gene made a point of asking how the kids and grandkids were; and always remembered birthdays. Along this same line, when my oldest son John was married; Gene and his wife Virginia attended the wedding. This was special to me because the wedding was in Portland; about a 5 or 6 hour drive from our state. Many of John's biological relatives didn't make that trip because of the distance-but Gene did.
Every time Gene visited our home, he would look around and say, "Your house looks nice, Debbie."
Every time Gene had dinner with us, he'd comment on how good the meal was.
At every birthday party Gene would sing the loudest and longest.
At every meal Gene asked the blessing; then urged the ladies to be served first.
When I was grappling with a tough career decision; I went to Gene. He listened and encouraged me to follow what my heart was saying. I did; and I am so glad I listened to him.
For 20 years I watched Gene treat his wife with the greatest kindness and respect. I saw him run a business with integrity; turning clients into lifelong friends. His sons respected and sought out his wisdom in all matters. His daughters -in- law loved him as they loved their fathers. He was dear to all of his grandchildren. Gene always had his priorities straight; and his priorities were other people. I wish I had been given 20 more years to watch Gene and learn from his example.
My sense of loss is immeasurable. But I know that Gene has gone to heaven and has heard the words that every Christian longs to hear; "Well done, good and faithful servant thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy lord." Matt. 25:23
Well done Gene; well done!
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