luke russert...

...on the today show today. he was incredibly composed, well spoken and gracious. i am truly inspired by the way he is dealing with such a loss.



all this coverage on tim russert reminds me of my father and grandfathers. much like mr. russert my dad and grandfathers came from working class homes. what spoke very much to me this weekend was the repeated mention of tim russert saying that he saw his father lead by example. it's kind of loss in today's hyper-communicative society (hyper-communcicative being a good thing). my dad is almost 66 and he has been working since he was 12. not a big talker, just pretty much goes to work and like silence when he can get it. a vietnam vet, but still largely a gentle guy who admist all his shortcomings just wants the people around him to have happiness and opportunity.

similarly, my grandfather was a wwII vet and a painter. he didn't have a lot of fancy things but worked hard to move his family from a small town in north carolina to new york city. he liked things that black/native american men weren't supposed to like--like golf. most strikingly, at his old age, when so many folks become mean he just became funnier and nicer. he would make fun of my cousin's lactose intolerance and rip the cheese off of her pizza. of course, he had his vices, cigarettes being his ultimate demise. but he defied so much of what and who he was supposed to be. he valued education even though he didn't have the opportunity to have a robust one.

so, to my dad, grandpa and tim russert and all dads around the world. happy father's day! and to all the folks reading, leave something about your dad on the comment board. we can all benefit.

-lx