My assemblage celebrates the labor union members in our family. T's dad was a member of two unions, the Firefighters Union and the Roofers Union. My dad was a Union Pipefitter. I'm a retired member of the National Education Association Union, the NEA. T's profession doesn't offer her the choice to join one.
For many it's a time for gathering to mark the end of summer and the beginning of the school year.
T's dad's silver badge and my red dad's polka dotted hat that he wore under his wielding helmet are my favorite things in the photograph. Their union work after the war was as meaningful as the days that they served during wartime. My dad had a CBI sticker on his hardhat, the insignia of from his WWII Army Air Force stint. He served as an aircraft- body maintenance technician in the high tea country of India. He repaired aircraft flown by the Hump Pilots. The initials stand for China, Burma, India. T's dad was a Navy veteran serving on the USS. Babbitt, a 'Tin Can' destroyer patrolling the dangerous North Atlantic, protecting convoys from enemy Gunboats and U Boats. He's wearing a cap from his Veteran's Association. They were wonderful men from the Greatest Generation, dedicated to their work and families. We miss them and honor them today.
For the Record,
This day became sunny and warm. I'm grateful for good weather allowing outside gathering to keep the Delta Variant from taking advantage of inside super spreader events as happened on Memorial Day and July 4th in rainy weather.
I retired from public school teaching after happily spending twenty eight years playing in Kindergarten. Now I fill my days watching cat antics, taking endless...
