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While you were sleeping….

September 22, 2008
posted by Andy | View Comments

photo.jpgI embarked on a vacation with just my father for the first time in my life last night.  We met in New York and flew to Ireland for 5 days of golf, sight seeing and hopefully some deep conversation.  When I woke up on the plane,  I saw the sun rising over the Irish coast thru the pane window and it was the moment I had been looking for to signify that we were on vacation.  Now that we have figured out how to navigate the left lane in a stick shift car  and gotten a little nap in, I am scared.  For some reason it’s easier for me to plan a vacation and get excited to interact with 2,500 strangers than my dad.  We are close and good friends but I have anxiety about being alone with him.

Can someone help me by sharing some experiences that might help me ease into this week and make this the most amazing vacation for both of us?  We both know our lives probably wont allow us this opportunity again for a long, long time.

-Andy

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This entry was posted on Monday, September 22nd, 2008 at 10:01 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

  • Scott

    When you are at a loss for discussion, reminisce about the good ol’ days. Always brings a smile to a father’s face.

  • wayne beamer

    Hey Andy,

    Don’t force “the moment,” or set any expectations, beyond what you two have already planned. Just enjoy the moments you have with your father as they come…

    The rest will take care of itself.

    Cheers,

    Wayne

  • Barbara

    Andy, you know the only advice I have for you is to sample all the Irish whiskey you possibly can.

  • Barb

    A little Irish Whiskey is certainly not a bad idea :) Other than that, what I’ve gathered from the Fathers and Sons that I’ve gotten to see interact, doing something together that is enjoyable seems to negate a lot of need for actual conversation.

  • Warren

    Just enjoy the moment Andy. Don’t put pressure on the situation. My Father is 87 and I enjoy every moment we spend together whether or not a conversation takes place. Remove the pressure on yourself and when you return you will be telling everyone what a great time you had.

  • Shane

    I never had a relationship with my father until I was in my early twenties and it was a very intimidating experience to “meet” him again for what seemed like the first time. Once I got past the whole “dad” thing and just viewed him as a person that I was getting to know, it became a lot easier. Ireland is such a great country. It’s so full of life and there is so much beauty to take in. Just go out and enjoy yourself and everything else will just flow naturally. If all else fails, drink lots of beer and/or whiskey. You’ll be acting like frat brothers in no time! Enjoy your time in Ireland.

  • Annette

    The best music has empty spaces between the notes. The best relationships do as well. Not every moment has to be filled with meaningful, life-changing conversation. Sometimes you can silently enjoy a view together, and that’s worth just as much.

  • http://www.sixthman.net Andy

    this is all great stuff. we had an easy day of golf and a casual dinner and both crashed around 8pm Ireland time. At 2am Ireland time, my dad woke me up and said he was hungry and couldn’t sleep. Sounded like my 2 1/2 yr old waking up in the middle of the night. He began scrambling around the room and was convinced we had no options for food this late. I finally picked up the phone and called the front desk where a cheerful irishman told us to order room service. 30 minutes later, we were eating “chicken and chips” watching monday night football and had an amazing conversation about where we are in life and exchanged advice and funny stories. He just crashed and now I cant go back to bed. Thinking about waking him up in a minute and pretending its time for our tee time?

  • Cathy

    A one on one with your Dad, what a great adventure, my Dad died when I was thirteen…so make the memories, they will be the stories you pass on. Have fun!

  • Marc P

    I know you’ve already been there and back, but my advice would have been that all your trepidation would disappear as soon as you stepped on the first tee. Glad you got to experience such a wonderful journey with your pops.

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