After my father died two weeks ago, we got the folder he had prepared for us. It had a copy of his will, a copy of his funeral arrangements, passwords, and other important papers. Everyone should do this for his/her family! It was such a gift and made the next set of choices so much easier. Dad also included a large envelope. We opened it up. It contained numerous pictures. My brother and I had never seen these pictures. They were of my Dad as a baby, as a young man. In the middle of sadness and grief it was so much fun to get these new glimpses of him.
One of them was from a survival school. I have heard him tell the stories so many times, but never seen this picture. Four months after I was born my father traveled to Stead Air Force Base in Reno, Nevada. There, he participated in survival training by the Strategic Air Command. It was a three week course. The first week was classroom instruction. The second week was a simulated prison camp. He told us a little about it. It was not pleasant. The last week was survival and evasion. He and his group were dropped off in the mountains and had to travel back to the base without getting caught. They had to forage for food or go hungry. There were traps and skilled trackers trying to find them.
He told a story of nearly being captured. He had run to escape and ran and jumped into a dark shadow in the forest and then lay motionless. He reasoned that someone coming out of the bright sun would not be able to see him. He waited and waited. He was sure that the tracker was near. He believed that the tracker had seen him, but was waiting to see if he would move. Mel waited. He was never sure how many hours. He talked about the experience often. He derived lots of meaning from the encounter. He tried to coach me in life. When in doubt, do the right thing. It will work out better. Stick with the right thing. You can master yourself. He taught me that I could ignore pain. While he lay in the dark and waited he listened to the wind. He saw and then felt the bugs. His stomach, already hungry, contracted even further. He slowed his breathing. He waited alert.
When I saw this photo, I looked at my Dad’s smile (Top left). He had learned so much about himself in those three weeks. He seems so joyful. I love that he scratched out the word, “Guest” and wrote in the word “Student.” He was a life long learner and never tired of sharing what he learned. He did more than survive, he thrived. I’m glad to celebrate him this Father’s Day.