Similar to my mom, I do not know that much about my dad, so I can only share bits and pieces with you this Father’s Day. There is absolutely no judgement in this post. Rather, some memories that were either shared by him, witnessed by me, or overheard from mother, aunts and uncles.
- He was born in Kazakstan but he is ethnically a Russian.
- At 14 years of age he was dropped off at a “trade” school in the big city by his parents.
- He shared a story how one time he was beaten by his father as a child – with a belt that had a metal buckle.
- He is 78 and exercises every other day, like clock work.
- I only remember seeing him cry twice: once when he put me on the plane to England to study there (I was a teen) and another time when he walked into a hospital room and saw me holding L the day she was born.
- Him and mom had/have a terrible marriage, each arriving with their own, terrible baggage.
- I *think* he wanted to leave many times.
- He always had many interests: bicycling, lifting weights, building, stonework, and TV/movies. He is not a reader.
- He has many friends till this day – most of them are from his early years.
- He has no filter and would say things that would make me crawl under the table
- He likes to drink, and I have seen him drunk many time during my childhood (and adulthood)
- He has a dark sense of humor
- He believes in what Russia is doing right now in Ukraine is for the best. Him and I, we do not/ can not talk about politics
- He likes to stay busy – he is retired but he is still working
- He has a dacha (a summer house) in the lake region in the south of Russia
- He has one younger sister – my aunt. She lives in the neighboring town, they are close.
Mom of Children 