Keep On Keeping On

My dad was the eternal optimist. Where this optimism came from, I can't tell you. Maybe it came with the original packaging. At the nice people factory, someone slipped in some extra-strength positivity. His Depression upbringing didn't strike me as the most upbeat recipe, yet he went through his entire life looking on the bright side, even when things turned to absolute kaka. Any setback was "character building." He didn't dwell on the things that didn't pan out. He was always on to the next "whatever."

When I'd call him up and talk about some career disappointment, he'd say, "Onward." That was shorthand for, "Keep on writing." When I'd call him up and talk about some life disappointment, he'd say, "Onward." That was shorthand for, "So, what else is new?" "Onward" is part of the SJG lexicon. As is, "Life is life," another beloved family expression. "Onward" keeps me schlepping forward. "Life is life" keeps me grounded. Come to think out it, wouldn't that be a great tombstone? "Life is life." Then again, "Onward" would be a great tombstone, too. Well, this blog just took a dark turn.