What I Miss....
I still miss Joe. As we get close to the 2-year anniversary of his passing, I still remember Joe's wonderful soul. I wanted to finally say a few words about my Florida brother-in-law and the fond memories I have of him.
I remember visiting Maur and Joe in Indiana. I traveled with my daughter Colleen who was maybe 6 or 7 and I remember Joe canon--balling into the pool at their apartment, to Colleen's extreme delight. She coined the nickname, Joe-fish, and we have used it ever since.
And speaking of children, Joe connected to kids so well. I have pictures of Joe challenging Christine to a chess game, swimming with Colleen, spoiling Zoe with a gator neck pillow at the airport, playing "Exploding Kitties," Zoe grabbing his hand as we hiked, kneeling so he could be on my kids' level. He didn't need to tell kids he liked them, they knew it.
When we visited Maur and Joe, they both tried so hard to make our trip exciting and fun. We traveled to Sarasota for a circus, we saw a mermaid show in Weeki Watchee, (Zoe was mermaid crazy at the time), we biked the Pinellas Trail, and sometimes we just wanted to go to the beach. And beach plans were not that easy--blankets, coolers, clothes, sunscreen, snacks, umbrellas, shade tents. Never did either of my hosts complain about the extra work our trips caused.
Joe and his camera. He was always documenting people, places and things. As he took multiple pictures of Meara at her graduation, I snapped a picture of him taking her picture. That was Joe. And what's more, he would share those pictures with us so we had memories as well.
Joe and sports. I can't tell you how shocked I was when he passed away. The man was a beast when it came to sports and physical activity. Swimming, running, soccer, football, biking, kayaking--whatever sport he put his mind to, he excelled in.
Joe and selflessness. If you needed help, Joe would drop what he was doing and he would help you out. I too have a story where Joe guided me as I drove from Daytona Beach to their house in St Pete before GPS made it so easy. I called every few hours so I knew I was on the right path. He volunteered for coaching jobs, writing gigs, lacrosse, marching band, neighborhood needs. If you had a computer problem, the man to see was Joe. And if it stumped Joe, he would figure it out, no matter how long it took. When we decided to move to Florida and found a house the same day we had to fly back home, Maureen and Joe took a tour for us, doing a video of course, and Joe even took "noise readings" so we knew as much about the house as we could.
Joe was a listener. When he asked you a question, he really cared how you answered. He made eye contact; he asked for clarification. He might have cocked his brow a bit if he wasn't agreeing with you but he really did care what you thought. And that is why people felt important when they interacted with him. He cared.
Joe and the house. Man, did he love that house--its history, its style, its innumerable problems. When Maureen held the memorial last year, she was so proud of the house being finished. It was a monumental task and I think Joe was smiling too.
Joe was smart. He knew a great deal and what he didn't know, he researched. The guy was best friends with his computer. He welcomed learning new skills and I always admired that.
Joe always wanted us to look for dolphins in the Bay. We would walk to the water after dinner and be on the lookout for dolphins. We actually never saw dolphins when we were with him. But I have seen them since. And when I see a dolphin, I think of Joe. I still miss him and all the qualities that made him such a special human being.