dad, upgraded to take-off . . .
by mulberryshoots
When we arrived to attend a small family service after my father passed away, the rental car agent asked if we wanted a free upgrade to a larger car with GPS. We said “sure.” Here’s the license plate of that “upgrade.”
The irony of this license plate is that my Dad was an astrogeologist who was at the right place at the right time: distributing moon rocks that astronauts gathered on the moon in the space flights taken in the 60’s. He was even quarantined for three weeks in a Gulf Airstream trailer with the astronauts when a glove blew a hole while handling the specimens. In an era of the novel, “Andromeda Strain,” it was thought to be prudent to isolate them, just in case. So, I guess the Cosmos thought it would be humorous for us to receive this last salute before my Dad took off into the wild blue yonder of the Universe!
mulberryshoots 
I just read the little piece on your Father. the picture of him is just how I remember him. Did you know he gave me a little tektite? I have kept it all these years. We were so proud that he worked on the moon rocks. I hadn’t heard the quarantine story before. He would sometimes patiently take me and Didi around the yard and show us bees and butterflies and his collections. He was always very patient with me (probably as one treats the incapacitated), but I could tell he was very demanding of you all. You just knew he had very high standards and one couldn’t help but hold him in high regard. Let me know when your book is out. I’ll get a copy and ask the library to buy one. Penny