Day #15 Me on Dee…. Reba McIntyre sang a song called, “The Greatest Man I Never Knew” and it begins this way…. ”the greatest man I never knew lived just down the hall, and evry day we said hello but never touched at all. He was in his paper. I was in my room. How was I to know he thought I hung the moon?...” Reba’s daddy was an ‘ole rancher down by McAlister OK. Mine straightened frames on automobiles in downtown Oklahoma City. That was just how it was for many of those daddy’s born at a time when showing emotion or affection to their daughters was a sign of weakness or just plain not done. Hearing Dee say “I love you” happened for me over a phone when I was in college and I had traveled all the way to Myrtle Beach South Carolina for a Beach project with Campus Crusade for Christ. He said, “Be careful out thar Deb and I love ya and am proud as punch of ya”. I had to immediately get off the phone and go put my head in a pillow and weep. I wept because I had never really ever doubted he loved Janis and me, but it just had never been heard with my ears until that day that. At least not that I can remember….I did know he loved me but there were several things I never knew…. I never knew what it was like for him to be born the middle of five brothers and a little sister in the Oklahoma country. I never knew what it was like to live in the Great Depression where you fed people out of your back door that came off of the train nearby. I never knew what it was like to ship out to a place a world away to fight in a great war, while leaving a six month pregnant wife behind. I never knew what it was like to be away in that war, and after one year fighting in the Philippines, hearing that your only little 6 month old baby boy had died of spinal meningitis…and then having to remain there for 2 more years of fighting. I never knew what it was like to drive tanks and jeeps into Tokyo Bay after going in to Hiroshima after the bomb had leveled that town….saving his life and millions of other American lives… I never knew what it was like to love someone you met in 3rd grade until my last breath, the way he loved my mother. So yes, there is a lot I didn’t know about Dee… BUT, here is what I absolutely knew about Dee…. I knew He loved God with all of his heart, his soul, and his mind. I knew he loved his family and would sacrifice all for them. I knew he loved his country and of course…OU football. I knew he could find me on any continent to make sure I was okay (that’s a story for another day..). I knew he couldn’t protect or redeem Janis or me from heart break, from pain, sickness, and even our own poor choices at times…but, Dee Reeser made sure we knew the ONE who could. He introduced us to our Lord and Savior Jesus. I knew he walked his talk. He was not perfect and never thought of himself as special. But I will never know anyone quite as special as he. The picture by the fireplace with our dog Okie and my mom, Barbara, was the last Christmas I ever got to spend with good ‘ole Daddy Dee. He loved Tex and he loved that dog. And they both loved him. Thank you ALL my friends who indulged in this with me. YOU blessed me this Christmas season so much with YOUR memories and how this silly idea of quoting Dee every day brought out so much more than I had anticipated. I heard from people from across the country who had such similar experiences as I did. What a fun couple of weeks for me! LOVE and Merry Christmas to all!
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 13:12:19 +0000
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