My uncle’s hands are callused and
scared, his nails are thick and unkempt, they show the wear and tear of a life
lived working, and working hard. For as
long as I can remember his hands have been like this. Even after he washes his hands they still
look dirty even though they are clean.
He has never had to wear a suit and tie to work; he’s lived most of his
life in jeans, and T-shirts. He looks
rough around the edges, but he’s kind hearted and would give you the shirt off
his back. He is the kind of guy who just
wants what’s best for everyone, he’ll knock on his neighbors windows in the
morning to remind them to move their cars to the other side of the street so
they don’t get a ticket. He’ll chase
hooligans trying to raise hell down the street with the attitude of “not my
neighborhood”. He’ll take in any stray
dog, cat, bird, person that needs a bit of love and dignity in their lives. He’s my uncle and he's incredibly gifted. He comes from a long
line of gifted men and women.
My family is littered with creative
and skilled people. We are a
multitalented family, like those of the renaissance. We have carpenters (Mike & Luke),
sculptors (Great Grandpa Anton), artists (Amber), and chefs (Eric), stain glass
workers (Mary), bakers (uncle Paul), whittlers (Great uncle John), barbecue
masters (uncle Pete), and a mason (Grandpa Pete) in our family tree, and every
single one of us claims to be an incredible cook. The common thread that runs through all of
these people who I call my family is that we have all honed our skills,
perfecting them through years of practice, never quite satisfied, and always
driven to perfection. I really think
there is something in our blood that is unrelenting; it drives us to keep at
it, not because we have to, but because we love to, and we are fiercely
competitive with our talents. We are
Slovenian and Italian, both very reputable nations for donning some of the
worlds most famous artists and artisans and I would argue that some of those
skills have found their way into my family, especially into my uncle Mike.
I’ve had the pleasure of watching
my uncle and my cousin Luke, who is equally talented; reassemble my house over
the last month. I could not have chosen
a more skilled set of men to do the job.
The work they have done has been nothing short of perfection and I’m so
blessed to be the recipient of such craftsmanship. Our house is not quite complete, but it is
close and I look forward to sharing pictures with all of you soon. It’s been almost 4 months since the fire and
there is a light shining at the end of the tunnel. We started out stunned and in a cloud, but we
found our clarity and have had such incredible support from our family and
friends. I still wonder how much of this
we will remember as the years unfold.
