Daddy's Da-Man

Gavin & Tom, July 2006

Buby loves his old man. That goes without saying. But lately he's become ultra Dad Aware, feeling it necessary to point out everything that is Tom's around the house. Like he's saying to me, "Don't Touch! That's my Dada's." This photo is one of 12 shots framed in our stairwell. Every morning, afternoon and night we walk those steps... Buby stops, touches this photo and yells "Dada!" Almost like he remembers that day. Of all the gorgeous face shots, he likes this one of their backs, taken on Grandpa's farm. By the front door, Buby picks up Dada's shoe and hands it to me with a smile. "Dada!" It's a good smile. Buby can't pass the hat rack in the mudroom these days without calling out Dada's fishing hat. He likes to try it on. And if Tom's dress shirts are out to iron, Buby runs up to them with urgency. "What Buby?" Of course, "Dada!"