The Board Meeting had come to an end. Bob started to stand up and jostled the table,
spilling his coffee over his notes. "How embarrassing. I am getting so clumsy in my old age."
Everyone had a good laugh, and soon we were all telling stories of our most embarrassing
moments. It came around to Frank who sat quietly listening to the others. Someone said,
"Come on, Frank. Tell us your most embarrassing moment."
Frank laughed and began to tell us of his childhood. "I grew up in San Pedro. My Dad was a
fisherman, and he loved the sea. He had his own boat, but it was hard making a living on the
sea. He worked hard and would stay out until he caught enough to feed the family. Not just
enough for our family, but also for his Mom and Dad and the other kids that were still at home."
He looked at us and said, "I wish you could have met my Dad. He was a big man, and he
was strong from pulling the nets and fighting the seas for his catch. When you got close to him,
he smelled like the ocean. He would wear his old canvas, foul-weather coat and his bibbed
overalls. His rain hat would be pulled down over his brow. No matter how much my Mother
washed them, they would still smell of the sea and of fish."
Frank‘s voice dropped a bit. "When the weather was bad he would drive me to school. He
had this old truck that he used in his fishing business. That truck was older than he was. It
would wheeze and rattle down the road. You could hear it coming for blocks. As he would drive
toward the school,I would shrink down into the seat hoping to disappear. Half the time, he
would slam to a stop and the old truck would belch a cloud of smoke. He would pull right up in
front, and it seemed like everybody would be standing around and watching. Then he would
lean over and give me a big kiss on the cheek and tell me to be a good boy. It was so
embarrassing for me. Here, I was twelve years old, and my Dad would lean over and kiss me goodbye!"