I
have two distinct memories of my Uncle Dale. The first was deciding that he was
going to be my Uncle Onionhead. The second is a much more serious conversation which happened when I was in high school when he stopped by on his Harley one evening. Uncle Onionhead was talking about making mistakes
and he told me, “You kids can learn from our mistakes, maybe you can, I hope
you can.” Uncle Onionhead died on February 22, 2016. Being 805 miles away, I wish I could have read this with my family, but thank you to my cousin, Chris, for reading the "family only" version of this poem during his memorial:
Here we are at long last,
You
and me and this epitaph.
“‘Tis
too soon,” some will say.
“Lord bless him and keep him,” others
will pray.
But, worry no more and have no regrets.
My
life was so full – never forget:
I’ve made mistakes, I’ve hated and
loved,
I’ve
given in and I’ve even given up,
I’ve lost hope and found hope and I’ll
always hope for you
to
learn from my past and remember me when you do.
Remember when you see a silly Mickey
Mouse
and
when you hear a Harley rumble past the house,
How I want for you to laugh with me
and to know, to feel, what it is to be free.
When a hundred other things remind you
that I’ve passed on,
Know that I’m at rest, at peace, where I
belong.
Love,
Your father, son, husband, and friend,
your
brother, your grandpa, and Uncle
Onionhead.
poem and blog by Katherine J. Chullino
February 2016
