Santa came to town on a motorcycle

For the last year or so my dad has been saying he wants to buy a motorcycle. He used to have one years ago and he also had a small bike that my brother and I rode on when we were younger. It was so much fun.

So last year we even went with him to a couple of bike shops in town. Turns out that at the time, gas prices were so high, that the shops couldn't keep the bike dad wanted in stock. Bikes get really good gas mileage. And in fact that's what spurred dad to look then, he could use it for driving around POC and back and forth to work. My mom (and I) have always half-heartedly protested his purchasing a bike...mostly for the safety issues.

My dad has eight brothers. He is of course closer to some than others. Mostly the ones close in age to him, the ones he 'grew up' with. My Uncle Paul is one of the ones he is very close to. Paul is my mom's age and they used to drive to college together before my dad and her were married. Then when my brother and I were small Paul lived with us for a short while. He later got married and had two wonderful boys. Sadly his wife passed away after battling melanoma several years ago. As you can imagine, her teenage sons and husband were dealt a harsh blow.

Through it all my dad and Paul (and his boys) have remained close to our family. Paul now travels a great deal for work and he and my dad golf every chance they get. Paul has one of the most generous hearts of anyone I know. So it really was no shock at all that he played secret Santa this year for my dad...

Well, I guess initially there was some shock...

And tears of joy...

And smiles. Definitely smiles.

What an amazing family I am a part of.