September, 1972: A Diary Entry
	July 15: At the Top of the John Hancock Building
	Return to Index for 1972

It had been an eventful year for me, what with my leaving the Army, moving to Chicago, getting a new apartment, and starting a new job, but by the middle of July, I was settled in to a new "routine"- a 9-to-5 job at the bank and weekends with friends. It was just after the middle of that month that my Dad called to tell me that he and Mom would be driving through Chicago in August and would like to stop to see me.

I was happy about that, and I knew that my Dad would love to see Chicago again. I also wanted to show him what my life was like here in the big city. In subsequent days, my parents shared more of their trip plans, and it became apparent to me that this would be the biggest road trip they'd been on since our trips to Florida back in the late 1950s.

They would be leaving Charlotte in late July and first driving up to Burlington to see my sister and her husband. They go there fairly often, and so I was a bit curious about why they would work that side trip into their "grand circle", as they would have to backtrack through Charlotte on their way to Atlanta to my Dad's brother's house. Ralph and Jane have been in Atlanta for a long time, and our family has visited there a few times.

From Atlanta they planned to work their way north to Chicago to spend two days with me and then they would drive around the south end of Lake Michigan and up to Muskegon (my birthplace) to see my Dad's only sister, my Aunt Marguerite. From Muskegon, they would drive over to Chicago to visit my Dad's other brother Bud, and his wife Evelyn. After a visit there, they would head home to Charlotte.

Even as my parents told me of their plans, it struck me that my Dad would, in a single trip, visit each of his children and each of his brothers and sisters. All of his immediate family. I thought this interesting, but not especially significant.

So they started out and, sure enough, on August 4th they arrived in Chicago to stay two nights with me in my apartment on Barry Street. I took them around downtown and the area where I lived, and we made a return trip to the Observatory at the top of the John Hancock Center. (I recall vividly that whenever my Dad got close to the windows, he always had his hand on one of the diagonal beams that ran inside the glass. Working in an architectural firm, I thought that he, as much as anyone, would know that the building was solid, but maybe he had a mild fear of heights that I hadn't known about!) It was a weekend, so I could only take them by the Bank so they could see where I worked.

We did make a trip up to Glenview to visit my cousin Bill Stelle; I don't think my Dad had seen him for twenty years or so, although I went to visit him shortly after moving here. My Dad was the photographer for our visit to Bill and Abie's house. (I do not know why I did not take any photographs during my parents' visit. All I can think of is that I must have thought that there was no particular reason to, as I could see my parents anytime. This was a big mistake, knowing what I know as I write this.)

My father had his camera with him, and he took some pictures at our gathering at Bill's house. Two of them showed my mom, Bill's wife Abie, and their oldest daughter Annie:

(Picture at left) Bill has two daughters, and here I am with the oldest of the two- Annie. Bill and I are the same generation, although he is 10-15 years older than me (my parents were fairly old when I was born); so he is my first cousin. That makes Annie my first cousin once removed.       (Picture at right) As it turned out, this was the last picture my father ever took of me.

We had a good time at Bill's, staying for dinner. And the entirety of my parents' visit was a good one. On Monday morning they left early for Muskegon and I headed off to work.

Please use the link below to return to the Index for 1972.

	September, 1972: A Diary Entry
	July 15: At the Top of the John Hancock Building
	Return to Index for 1972