Day 225

12/26/22

I have been the lucky recipient of countless, lovely gifts in my life. This Christmas, my family presented me with one of the best surprise presents EVER!

I believe I get my love of dogs from my dad. He never met a pup he didn't adore...and they were all devoted to him. Before Goldens, we were a family with collies devoted to my father. Although I was a bit envious of this adoration, I couldn't blame them...I was just as devoted

In WWll, my dad was in the Army Air Force. He wanted to be a pilot and that was almost his destiny.

To get into pilot training, he had to pass a few tests. Most were passed with "flying" colors, though the eye chart was a bit daunting. As he waited squinting in line, he memorized the lines on the chart. When it was finally his turn, he rattled off every letter and became an Aviation Cadet.

His last solo flight had him landing on the runway at night. He bounced that plane 20 feet in the air after initial contact with the runway! They rechecked his sight and discovered he had horrible depth perception. The next morning, he was on KP duty while his senior officers tried to figure out what to do with him!

A few days later, he was sent to Harvard University where he trained to be an operations officer. After graduating from Harvard in six weeks (a fact he would mention proudly later), he was sent to Italy to be the Operations Officer of the 455th Bomb Group, at an American airfield near Foggia. Grounded, in theory, he was often invited to accompany senior officers who needed flight hours. When aloft, these officers would go to the back of the plane for a nap, giving Dad the opportunity to fly all over southern Europe! They would change places again for the landing.

I am probably here today because of that failed night flight!

I was gifted the beautiful desk for Christmas this year. The top is from a crate Dad sent to my grandparents when he was coming home. Son-in-law Matt built it and I received it with tears.

Love of dogs, love of history, love of family and love of people...shared with my father. Counting my many blessings!