Fixing Things

Wherever Grandaddy goes, he fixes things:  bikes, boats, boys.

His t-shirt says "Just Fix It."

When your Daddy, Wesley, and I were little we lived in Baltimore, Maryland.  We had three uncles who were Grandma's brothers - Uncle Duane, Uncle Regene, and Uncle Leon.  Each one had a wife who would have been our aunt.  Here they are in order:  Aunt Needie, Aunt Fran, and Aunt Shirley.    I think you boys have met Uncle Regene.  I don't know about the others.  We had quite a few cousins, too.

All the uncles would get Grandad to help with the engines on their boats.  Baltimore is right on the Chesapeake Bay.  All the uncles had boats and would go out fishing and cruising around on the bay.  Grandad knew a lot about boat engines from his time in the Coast Guard as a mechanic.   Once a bunch of us were out on one of the boats and ended up stranded with a engine problem. I don't remember what the problem was, but I remember the fun and adventure part!  We kids weren't scared much at all. It was great.  The aunt raided the cupboards of the boat for food.  I remember eating sardines and crackers.  They put us all to bed in the bow of the boat where there were bunk beds.  I was a little scared then because I wondered if there might be some spiders up in there.

I don't know if Grandaddy fixed the boat that time or if we ended up being towed in, but there were a number of times when he did.  One time he even had to dive under the boat to fix something.  I recall hearing that the water was very cold.

Grandaddy was well known for fixing things.  One story I remember was that one of the cousins insisted that he could fix anything and would bring him things to take care of including toys and bikes and even shoes!   One pastor would say that Mr. Beckner just needed to lay his hands on a car to fix it.  I remember Daddy looking at someone's car for just a few minutes and knowing exactly what was wrong with it in a jiffy.

I think Grandad could fix the U.S. government if given a chance.  Uncle Byron is a good mechanic, but has been known to call on Grandad's advice when he couldn't figure out a problem.  Grandad's even been known to fix boys from time to time.  Every one of mine has had a little fixing done by Grandaddy when they were little.

Grandaddy on a visit to Dalton at the boarding school.

Father's Day is Sunday in the USA but not here in Brazil.  Nonetheless it's a good day to remember all the things that Grandaddy can do and how much he loves each one of his boys - William, Dalton, Greyson, Aaron, Joshua and Isaiah.

Take care, boys, and be a good fixer of things when you grow up just like Grandaddy.

Isaiah 58:11-13

And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, 
The repairer of the breach, 
The restorer of paths to dwell in.

Be grateful, boys, for a fixer man like Grandaddy and for the greatest fixer of them all - Jesus Christ.