I spent an hour Monday night looking at the crescent moon and the tight little cluster of the Pleiades. It made me think about those I love who have become stars in my sky.
I often tell myself that Heaven is closer than Indianapolis, Oak Park, or Edgewater Beach up on the North Side.
A dear friend of mine lost her mom earlier this month. She is missing her dearly. I told her to look for signs.
Several hours later, I heard a rap on my bedroom window. The wind was calm.
It was my mom and you Chalkheads guessed it, the clock read 2:22 a.m.
I don’t mind being awake earlier than I’m supposed to. It beats the alternative…
…and that is grieving.
I don’t have time to grieve, because my parents have never left me.
Do you know what I miss?
I miss Robin Williams, David Bowie, Prince, and Dick Buckley on WBEZ.
I miss Gossage Grill, Cavanaugh’s, The Comeback Inn, Gennaro’s, and Zum Deutschen Eck.
I miss the old Sox Park, Soldier Field before the spaceship landed, Bush Stadium with the teepee in centerfield, and the Chicago Stadium.
I miss watching baseball on television without a subscription or a streaming service.
I miss Old Style being krausened up in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
…And I miss my kids’ toddler voices saying, “I love you, Dada.”
But I don’t miss my parents.
We are getting closer to the Judeo-Christian holy seasons. That Passover supper is one of the strongest bonds between our faiths.
We need to hold onto that. We need to walk together and fight the terror of hate.
Because I truly believe WE are headed to the same place, eternal peace.
We won’t have a flock of virgins meeting us.
But we will meet Moses, David, Jesus and Don Rickles….
… and our loved ones will be there as well!
It’s Tuesday morning.
And things never looked so good. I’m already in a daydream.
