More raspberries today. Grasshopper No.1 brought more of the red morsels. My understanding is that there are so many berries on the bushes they will be food for the critters.
Andy Pafko died this week. He has been a person that has “threaded” through my life. It began with stories from my Dad. My Dad was invited in 1940 to a baseball “try-out” with the Chicago Cubs. One of his best friends during that period was Andy Pafko. My Dad recounted the physical attributes of the Boyceville, Wisconsin farm boy. Pafko could throw a baseball from the fence in centerfield to homeplate “on the line”. Pafko went on to play for the Chicago Cubs, the Brooklyn Dodgers and finally the Milwaukee Braves (not Brewers). The Milwaukee Braves came to Milwaukee in 1953. My Dad used the Pafko connection to get some autographs during the mid-50’s. Pafko even met with our family after one game at Miller Park.
Several years ago Son-in-Law Tom found a wall billboard announcing that Pafko was coming to Boyceville in 1986 to dedicate a baseball field he played on as a kid. The billboard features a large picture of Pafko. I have it mounted on my wall in the basement.
Pafko has been a constant reminder that he followed the path my Dad had wanted. Pafko played in the Major Leagues for 17 years, a career my Dad had dreamt of. My Dad and Pafko were almost the same age. It is un-imaginable that my Dad could still be alive following Pafko’s long life (Bucky died 56 years ago).
It seems like the end of life’s journey is becoming a nursing home. Pafko died in a nursing home. A quiet end to an exciting life. I can’t help but wonder “will the the Pafko connection” appear in my life once again?
Enjoy the colors.
Love,
Dad