When I was a child, my father would say the most peculiar things; odd things, indecipherable things, things beyond my five year-old comprehension. Being intellectually lazy and a quick study, I learned how to react to his curious utterances by mimicking the reactions of the adults in the room. My father was a formidable man and I understood that we were all pretending to understand his incomprehensible utterances. It made perfect sense as a five year-old. Hell, it makes perfect sense to me today at fifty-one. Like I said, my father was a formidable man.
One day my father was speaking about an unmarried cousin who was about to become a father when he made the most enigmatic comment he ever spoke,
"A stiff Dick has no conscience."
I understood to take my cue from the adults in the room, bow my head and look remorseful. I understood that this Dick guy was not a nice boy. I understood that we didn't have any cousins named Dick. I understood my father was formidable man and a complete mystery at times.
Today, I see so many overworked, exhausted unwed mothers and now these many years later...
I understand my father was both formidable and wise.
