Dad, Dick and Jeremy - Three Generations of Special Men

This is a grouping on one of the shelves in my studio of things that have very special meaning to me. My father Juel made the giraffe of paper mache, my brother Dick carved both the Santa and the zebra and the photos are of my favorite nephew Jeremy (Dick's son) when he graduated from high school and one of the two of us when he was very young. My father was born in Denmark and he came here with his family as a child - he was the youngest. He was a talented artist and his lifelong dream was to one day be able to retire and devote all his time to his art. He lost his sight shortly after retiring and so that dream was lost and it ended his ability to draw and paint his landscapes and portraits. But as the instinct in an artist is strong, he then came up with his own recipe for a paper mache mixture and started to create animals and birds in that medium. He could not see, so he sculpted them using his sense of touch and his amazing memory for anatomy. He painted them using his fingers as a brush so that he could tell where the paint was. This giraffe he made for me in that way and now that he is gone it is very special to me. My brother is also a very talented artist, he sculpts in the polymer clays and is a self-taught carver. As you can see from the Santa and the zebra, his work is wonderful. He carved these for me and also sculpted me a most wonderful polymer Santa that is being repaired and they are also very special. My nephew was my special buddy when he was a young boy and when I would go to visit them he would make me feel very smart and funny and include me in bike riding with his friends. The photo of us together has so many special memories and the one of him as a young man is the lovely person he is today and he remains my special buddy in my heart. They all are special in my heart - my father, my brother and my nephew. Three generations of special men during my lifetime and who remain that still. They all share a wonderful wit and sense of humor and a kindness that comes from caring about people.