Dad, the Past and the Future

In 1952 someone snapped a picture of my dad and his mother and all his siblings. Dad is third from the left.

In 2008, yesterday, Dad had a day surgery but was put under general anesthetic. After which he informed the nurses he knew how to take care of himself at home, told them a few jokes and, once home, insisted on cooking his own lunch.

Yep he's a trooper, my dad. His own dad died in 1948 and his mother (center) would be dead in about a year. But fifty-two years later he is still going. (As are three of the sisters in this picture.)

You wonder when you see a picture like this if anyone in it could imagine the future. And you think, probably not. That's just how I feel, too. I can't imagine the future even as I try to plan for it.