87 years of happy memories...

My dad, a most interesting and extraordinary man who gave us so many happy memories in all of his 87 years. Being a Szabó meant we were always pretty unique. If I got into any trouble at school, I couldn't hide from it with a name like Szabó! Dad, being dad, always taught us to be the very best at what we did. He was a 21st century man that was way ahead of his time!

As a child I remember seeing him one week and not the next, due to his shifts. However, I always knew when he'd arrived home in the evening. I could smell the soup and croutons which mum made for his supper, though I never dared go downstairs because my dad was very old-school. His influence was legendary. Imagine a mix of eccentric red-blooded Hungarian foreigner combined with  a good helping of English sensibility, patience, intelligence and the unfailing ability to cope with anything life throws at me and that's what makes me truly unique.

I have both parents to thank for my drive and hunger for work, my passion for life and my creativity. If I ever mentioned any project I was doing at school, my dad wanted to get involved and although I might have resisted, he always knew the best way to do anything. "Do it this way" was just one of his mantras! He'd help me with my projects, encourage me to keep trying until I got something right and he believed in me even when I'd almost given up. He's also the one that kept me up until after midnight giving me photoshop tutorials! God, I loved that man, my dad!

I'll admit, there's no easy way to prepare for what has happened in my life this week but even as dad's life was fading, he still knew what was best for his family. He couldn't give us anything but time and that's exactly what he gave us. He's always been the strongest and most determined character that I've ever known. Someone very close to me told me that he will decide when it's time to leave and I believe that's what he did. He may have been ill but he didn't leave before Christmas because he knew it would be unbelievably hard. He made it into January and then must have thought 'Oh B*&%$r' because of mom's birthday on 3rd and my brother's on 9th so he clung on knowing that we could share those special memories... and then it would be okay to leave. However painful our loss might be, we can be comforted by the fact that he is not suffering any more. His pain is now shared between everyone who ever loved him. His body was 87 years old and was failing him quite miserably but now there is a sense of relief because his spirit is free.

87 years of memories cannot be washed away with one day's new tide

Miklós Szabó 16 Nov 1924 - 10 Jan 2012