I learned a new word in the ‘70s: imperturbable. Interestingly, it came from a press kit mailed to me by WLS after I sent them a lengthy fan letter chronicling my devotion to their radio station. The page of the press kit devoted to their midday personality characterized him as “imperturbable Tommy Edwards.”
As accurate a description of Tommy Edwards as that was, Tommy’s being the smoothest, most inviting midday host I’ve heard to this day, I’ve always felt that “imperturtable” was the perfect word to describe my father. Unflappable, balanced, cool under fire, imperturbable—that was my father.
I’ve really grown to appreciate that aspect of my father as the years have passed, especially since I recall how often I put his imperturbability to a test on a regular basis. The night I tripped and split open my forehead running from him and he had to take me to the emergency room. The night I crashed his car into a guard rail on an icy street. The year my grade in Latin took a nosedive after I simply decided to stop attending class. How I tormented him from time to time! I gave him plenty of chances to lose his temper or just freak out entirely. Somehow, he never came unglued.
My father had rules that were never to be disobeyed. You knew where you stood with him, and he made it clear how he felt whenever you disappointed him. It wasn’t that he was unemotional. Not at all. But, when the chaos was at its peak and it would have been easier to raise a voice and a hand, my father was always able to rise above it all, to summon an uncommon ability to remain calm.
On this Father’s Day I’m going to spend a few minutes remembering what my dad meant to me. And, among the things he was that I wish I could be, imperturbable remains high on my list.
Tags: Father's Day
