Two weeks after Thanksgiving, my Poppa began the fight of his life. That fight ended today. What started with heart issues causing him to pass out, resulting in mad ambulance rides to the hospital, ended with hearing the words “metastatic cancer” and “all we can do is make him comfortable”.
Kenneth Ryeson Parent’s earthly departure marks the end of an era. All of his 12 siblings passed before him. It’s surreal to think that finally all of the siblings will be together as several of his brothers and sisters passed before he was even born.
We learned the sound of his voice because he read to us from cradle to college. We learned to appreciate music because he shared his love of classic jazz and classical music with us from birth and beyond. We learned the value of hard work watching him work as many as 3 jobs at a time to ensure he could take care of his family. We learned that we needed to be responsible for our own happiness by his example of pursuing his own. We learned the true meaning of love from a man who had to figure it out on his own.
This is an album from his massive jazz record collection. Whenever Stan Kenton and his orchestra came to the Detroit area, he had a front-row seat, and one of us kids next to him. He also saw Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich, and Count Basie as often as possible. When I was a little girl, he walked up to Count Basie after a performance at the Michigan State Fair and proudly said, “Count, this is my daughter Annette. Annette, this is the Count!”
He made sure we had library cards, encyclopedias, and storybooks. Sunday nights he sat with us watching Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. Summer meant day trips to the lake or the zoo. Any time of year was the right time to go to the park to feed the ducks or go skating.
I feel as though I am rambling but I want everyone to know this special man the way my siblings and I do, for now, this is the only way that can be possible.
How did you know how to
Be a dad to us kids
When your dad never did
Perhaps it was
That you were just doing
What you wished had been done
Between father and son
As best you could
In our hearts, memories
Of times filled with laughter
And here, ever after
The love you shared
©2023 Annette Rochelle Aben
xoxox
Annette Rochelle Aben
Annette Rochelle Aben 