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Had Lunch With My Uncle Yesterday
nunn
Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 36,005 ******
I may have mentioned my uncle Lloyd before. Retired attorney, former U.S. Navy pilot. He said when he learned of my birth, he was at sea, perfecting his carrier landings.
I remember being at my grandparents' place one summer. I was maybe 3 or 4 years old. My grandfather checked his watch, and asked me to come outside with him. We stood in the front yard, my grandfather searching the sky. In a few minutes, here they came, two jets flying overhead. They were F9s, either Cougars or Panthers, I don't recall which. They flew out of sight, just cruising. Once out of sight, they did a 180 and came back over, this time really honking it on. Back then, jets went supersonic a lot, and no one really complained about the boom. It was LOUD. My grandfather said, "There goes Lloyd." The pilots were Lloyd and his wingman on a "training" mission, just clowning around. Back in the 1950s, I reckon they could get by with more horseplay than now.
His older brother, my father, died when I was quite young. Lloyd didn't step in to take his place, but he did spend some time with me. The first .30-06 I ever shot was his, and I still have the Winchester model 37 shotgun he gave me when I was 11.
I don't see him often. He lives a few hours away, and he drove down just to visit, maybe for the last time.
Lloyd is in his early 80s now, and has cancer. He said that he was given options: Surgery, chemotherapy, etc. He decided that, at his age, he would decline and let Nature take its course.
He brought me a gift. A minty Browning Hi-Power, in the zipper bag, that he bought new sometime around 1970. I don't know how to describe my feelings about the gift. It's a really nice gun that anyone would be proud to own, but I wish Lloyd would stick around a while longer and enjoy it himself.
I remember being at my grandparents' place one summer. I was maybe 3 or 4 years old. My grandfather checked his watch, and asked me to come outside with him. We stood in the front yard, my grandfather searching the sky. In a few minutes, here they came, two jets flying overhead. They were F9s, either Cougars or Panthers, I don't recall which. They flew out of sight, just cruising. Once out of sight, they did a 180 and came back over, this time really honking it on. Back then, jets went supersonic a lot, and no one really complained about the boom. It was LOUD. My grandfather said, "There goes Lloyd." The pilots were Lloyd and his wingman on a "training" mission, just clowning around. Back in the 1950s, I reckon they could get by with more horseplay than now.
His older brother, my father, died when I was quite young. Lloyd didn't step in to take his place, but he did spend some time with me. The first .30-06 I ever shot was his, and I still have the Winchester model 37 shotgun he gave me when I was 11.
I don't see him often. He lives a few hours away, and he drove down just to visit, maybe for the last time.
Lloyd is in his early 80s now, and has cancer. He said that he was given options: Surgery, chemotherapy, etc. He decided that, at his age, he would decline and let Nature take its course.
He brought me a gift. A minty Browning Hi-Power, in the zipper bag, that he bought new sometime around 1970. I don't know how to describe my feelings about the gift. It's a really nice gun that anyone would be proud to own, but I wish Lloyd would stick around a while longer and enjoy it himself.
Comments
Prayers for everyone from here.
Maybe in the next week or two, you should go visit him!![;)]
I'm very happy for you.
I agree take some time and go visit him , I am sure the fly over story has been told many times but one more will not hurt of how that was a wonderful time for you , I am sure he enjoyed doing it also .
Regardless of how busy you are take a day or two and go offer to help him out with a small project around the house (clean gutters or something) or just another lunch.
As you say it may be the last time and he'll know how much you appreciated the visit.
You are retired now
My Uncle Thomas was my mentor. He took me hunting and fishing when I was a kid and taught me how to reload. There wasn't much he couldn't do and he was my best friend. He moved to Mississippi when I was 15 years old and I didn't get to see him very often after that but we stayed in touch. When he died I went to his funeral and the next day I was back home when my step aunt called and said "I forgot to mention it to you at the funeral yesterday that your Uncle said he wanted to make that I gave you his guns when he died". She ask do you want them? I was almost in her drive way before she got the phone hung up. I only hit the high spots between Montgomery, AL and Jackson, MS on my way. I got all the guns that my Great Grandpa and Grandpa owned plus my Uncles that I had grown up shooting and hunting with. He had kids of his own but my Aunt said that my Uncle told her that any of the other family members would sell the guns except for me. He was right I'll never sell them. I'll just pass them on to my youngest son since he is more like me than any of the other kids.
Too old to live...too young to die...