On Father’s day I miss my Daddy – Herman Raphael Nayer (1909-2003). I think of all the father’s day gifts that I made him over the years and of all the gifts that he passed on to me:
- my deep set eyes and hook nose
- love of literature, great music and art
- appreciation of intelligence and genius
- curiosity and awe
- the transformational power of great suffering
- the depths and heights of the human heart
- Yiddish stories, Freud and Shakespeare
- off color jokes
- dill pickles and pastrami (in my pre- vegie days)
- cultural judaism
- New York City
- Sunday Times crossword puzzles
- serving and caring for others (he was a physician)
- swimming
- clam digging
- endurance
- warm hugs
- the gift of deep conversation
- love
Happy Father’s Day.
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