Page 22 - Reason To Sing by Kelita Haverland

Reason To Sing

Chapter Three

Daddy and The Homestead

“It doesn’t matter what a person looks like on the outside, it’s
what’s on the inside, right here, that really matters.”
Daddy points to my heart and then gives Vian and me
each a big bear-hug. We drape ourselves over him on the fancy
chesterfield. I grab the small black comb out of his front shirt
pocket and start running it through his hair. We love playing
hairdresser with Daddy because he lets us do whatever we
want. He’s got thick black hair with lots of Brylcreem in it. It’s
oily and sticky but I like the way it smells. My little sister and
I giggle like crazy as we style his hair in funny ways. Daddy
doesn’t mind at all. He is always happy to make his girls happy.
We play another favourite game called “Where’s the
Penny.” Daddy takes a penny and hides it in one of his hands.
Then he puts both hands behind his back, and we try to guess
which hand it’s in. After we finish, the three of us snuggle up
together and stare out the large picture window. It faces the #2
Highway. We count every single car and truck driving by. I feel
safe when I’m so close to Daddy. I just love him so much.
Daddy was born in Archie, Missouri, in the United States.
His full name is Americus Ivan Ohler, but everyone just calls
him Ivan, thank goodness. Americus is such a big word, and
besides, it just sounds so - American! When he was very little,
in 1915, Grandma and Grandpa brought him and my two
aunties to Canada. They settled on the family farm, which is
eighty miles south-east of Calgary, in southern Alberta. Later,
my daddy became a Canadian citizen.

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