Crayons and Snow Men

I found these in the same box I found my old art work from elementary school days. They're not mine. They were my father's from his school days art class. A hand made booklet full of snowmen in different positions with different faces and expressions.












Today is my father's birthday, or would have been. I have only to walk into my studio and see and smell the old Cabinet cigar box which holds his school days crayons, and feel like he is here with me.

I have gleaned several things from my father: One is don't judge a person by "it's cover" or certainly, until you take the time to get to know that person. We are all different and the things we carry with us have a lot to do with the baggage we carry, the places we've been, how we were raised and more. None of us knows what it is to have walked in another's shoes, until we have done so ourselves.
And, adults really don't have all the answers - that adults can and do make mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes can be pretty big ones. It is up to us whether we can forgive, when, and in what way we do, whether it's ourselves or someone else.
I think if my Dad were here today, I'd have a lot to talk with him about. I'd have a lot of art to show him and songs to sing. Happy Birthday, Dad. I miss you.