The occasion was Frank Sisson's 85th birthday. Buying or making a gift for dad at any age can sometimes be a problem and by 85 you know he has received every birthday present and Christmas present and Father's Day present there is to give. But his daughter Anne came up with an idea for one that he had not been given. She E-mailed her siblings and all the grandkids and the great grand kids and said she thought it would be great if everybody contributed a list of all the things they love about their dad or grandfather or great grandfather. She would compile a list of 85 of their reasons. She said she would have the list printed up and have it framed and they could present it to him on his birthday. Well, as anyone who knows Frank would have expected the contributions were incredible. Anne put them together and printed them up as promised but she didn't group them by who sent them. She mixed them all up so in reading them all you really got an overall picture of the man being honored. From time to time during the dinner different children would stand up and read a section of the list. Everybody loved not only seeing Frank's enjoyment of it but it was fun to see a bit of him through the eyes of the others, even their own brothers and sisters.
Just to give you an idea of the type of things that were on the list I read a few of the contributions. I'm sure once you start on such a list for someone you love the thoughts would flow. This is the kind of a gift that even the smallest child can be a part of.
85 Things We Love About You
- You made me believe I had major league potential.
- You let me eat anything I wanted at the ballpark.
- You didn't give me up for adoption when it turned out that I couldn't hit a curve ball.
- You introduced me to the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln with the words, "and this, too, shall pass."
- I love you for being a laughing; singing grandpa who made me laugh and feel like a little boy should feel . . . loved and cared about.
- I love you for showing me how to use fastidious and ubiquitous in the same sentence.
- I love you for always treating Mom like a lady. I love you for always treating your daughters like ladies.
- I love you for always making me feel that I was the one person you were hoping to see coming through the door.
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