Sometime in November, my grandfather made a comment about my pea coat. I've had my coat for years, but apparently it was new to him.
Suddenly, his eyes glazed over as his mind ran through his memories of a time gone by. He reminisced about his time in the Navy, and mentioned that he had a pea coat similar to mine when he was a cadet. He noted the buttons of my coat, and with a stern face and a flicker of a smile, he said disapprovingly, "Abby, this isn't Navy issue. The buttons are wrong."
Apparently, Navy issue pea coat buttons have anchors on them.
At my cousin's New Year's Eve party, he came in with a smile on his face. I told him that I admired his new shirt. He took me by the hand and said, "I also got a new coat."
And with childlike glee, he proudly showed me his new Navy issue pea coat, perfect down to the button.
I love it when he's happy.
I celebrated with him and his new found joy. I even asked him to model his new coat. He laughed at my request, saying that I don't need a picture commemorating a coat that makes him feel like a cadet. I told him that may be true, but I do want a picture commemorating him feeling young again. Finally, he relented to a picture. And, of course, I took advantage of the rare opportunity when my grandfather would pose for a picture, and took two:
I think my grandfather would still make a very handsome cadet.
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