Father's Wisdom

Last Sunday I had a coupon to entice me to go to Barnes and Nobles Bookstore. I don’t go there often, but a coupon e mailed to me from them, will get me there usually, especially since I finally joined their membership plan, between their sale, a coupon and my member’s discount sometimes I can get a real deal. Of course, in addition to the buying the book that the coupon was for, I did browse around and ended up buying something else too! Last year around this time I had heard Tim Russert talk about a book he wrote about his Father. It sounded interesting, but I didn’t purchase it. Tim Russert is the moderator and managing editor of Meet the Press, and the Washington bureau chief of NBC News.

This spring, due to many letters and e mails he received from sons and daughters who read his book, he wrote another called “Wisdom of Our Fathers, Lessons and Letters from Daughters and Sons”. Of course it was released in time for Father’s Day, and of course, I have seen him interviewed several places on TV about his book. It sounded good. I love to read books, but have found I have little time to do so, (Especially since I’ve been writing, ha ha). But, I have found another way to “read” a book. I buy the “audio” CD version of the book on CD, and listen to it in my car, on a trip, or back and forth to work, 5 days a week! It’s a neat way to “read”. SO… you know what I did, I bought the CD version of Tim’s book. I’ve been listening to it going back and forth to work all week. It is great. There are so many good stories about Dad’s, and reflections by their son’s and daughters. The letters received by Tim Russert are actually “read” on the cd, from the book, and when it’s a daughter, it’s read by a woman and then Tim has things to say in between the letters. Many of the letters bring tears to your eyes, but not all. It’s heartwarming and insightful. Each letter contains a memory that kids remember most fondly of their Dad. I found a lot of letters from children who had Dad’s that found it hard to express their love in words, but were good at it in their actions. I realized that it was not only my Dad that found it hard to say the words “I Love You” (remember one post I wrote, saying I was 22 and leaving the state, before I heard those words from my Dad, I am going to repeat some of that in my next post about Dad). I realize now that for Father’s in that generation, it was hard for them to express those three words verbally.

On Wednesday, my e mail brought another coupon from Barnes and Nobles, and I decided I wanted to pick up Tim’s first book about his Dad, entitled “Big Russ and Me”, So I did, got it for $9.00! That one I will have to read though, not listen to…the CD’s are not quite the bargain that the books are!