Saying Goodbye to Dado

How do I begin to say goodbye? 

I’ve been thinking about your life and the impact it has had on mine.  It’s immeasurable. 

You were always there for me when I needed you.

I know you had a good life.  You had a wife you loved who loved you and 4 good kids who may have driven you crazy at times, but never got into any real trouble, and all grew up to be pretty nice people.  I was probably the most rebellious of the 4, might have given you a few gray hairs, but that just made things interesting, and you thought I turned out OK.

You had a great career.  It was always cool to have a Dad in the TV business.  I loved getting to see the pilots for the new shows before anyone else did and got to meet some famous people over the years.  You were quite the local celeb.  When anyone would hear my name was Windsor, they would immediately say “Any relation to the guy on TV?”

I guess that the grandkids were the best thing I ever did for you.  You loved them all – the ones who were blood and the ones who were “Ready-Made.”  Your annual reading of Twas the Night Before Christmas was something special they will each remember for the rest of their lives.  

And I was so proud to be able to find your Italian family for you, after you had searched in vain for them your whole life.  You said that closed a hole you had felt for 80 years.

For most of the 28 years you lived here after we lost Mom, it was just you and me in the Orlando area.  You took care of me, and after Mom died, it went both ways. I took care of you, too.

Thank you for always taking care of me.

Thanks for giving me Mom as my mother.

Thank you for bringing me up right.

Thank you for my education.  Sorry about all those classes I dropped!  But remember - I got an A in Bowling!

Thank you for all the wonderful Christmases.  No one ever had more fabulous holidays than we did.

Thank you for letting me have a pony when I wanted one more than anything else in the world.

Memories…

The candy jar and you sharpening your candy stick to a point and then scaring me with it.  I would run away screaming.  The grandkids got a kick out of that one, too.

You and Mom singing songs and dancing in the kitchen - “Hold tight” by the Andrews Sisters, and the ever popular duet “You say po-tay-to, I say po-tah-to…”

Our shared Birthday Parties - Since our birthdays were only a day apart, we celebrated together for over half a century.

All those wonderful vacations we took.  What great memories you created for all of us.  Who could forget the Doctor’s Motel?

You shared with me your love of Broadway Musicals – You loved to tell the story of how, when I was only about 5, I memorized every line and every song in The Most Happy Fella and would stand by the stereo and perform it along with the recording.

Just before you got sick, we emailed about your memory of me when I was little singing the song “Just in Time”, but you said I pronounced it Dusht in Time. 

The one spanking I remember you giving me, over the fireworks.  Enough said.  You know what I mean.

Helping you with your big holiday party every year.  Everyone had a great time, but no one more than you.

All those Nana Puddins and Mountain Pies.

The example you and Mom set for how a husband and wife should treat one another.

How blessed we were to have such great parents.

You lived your life in such a way that all who knew you respected and admired you.

I know you have gone on to a reward for a life well-lived. But I’m going to miss you so much.

I was, and always will be proud to be your daughter.