David's 1st Picture--October 4, 1979 |
Today I got an invitation from Mensa. Okay, it wasn’t a real
invitation, it was one of those mass-emails that organizations send out to
people, and I got one. They invited me to take the test to see if I were one of
the people who can meet and mingle with others in the upper 1% of thinkers
(actually the upper 1% of scores on IQ tests). I didn’t respond, mainly because I’m not Mensa material and I'm smart enough to know
it. I have a wickedly precise memory and a mind for languages, but I’m
“challenged” when it comes to directions, patterns, maps, statistics, and
numbers. In other words, I am a right-brained person. The left side of my brain
is carried by the right.
David—my step-son—could be in Mensa.
David is one of the smartest people I know, understanding patterns and equations into the fourth dimension. Before becoming a programmer/web designer/ hardware systems expert, David majored in astrophysics.
“I used to smash protons together in these closet-sized labs at school,” he once told me. “Until I had enough of it.” He was smart enough to study astrophysics, and smart enough to leave.
David on his first computer--a Kaypro--telling Joe his turn will be in about two hours |
When I met him, he was six years old, and he loved everything. I used to tell him (and his brother, Joe) that he was the best step-son in the world, and I didn’t deserve him. I deserved a step-son who hated me, one who stormed out of the house and called me a bitch under his breath...but David never said one unkind thing to me—ever.
At the New York Public Library 1987 |
As he grew, David reminded me more and more of his
Dad—especially his weird and obscure sense of humor, followed by a funny,
squeaking puppy laugh—which is a good thing.
He grew and grew and grew. Eventually, he got married and
had children. Just the other day, Mario told me that David was going to be
turning forty and I had a heart attack from the realization (I’m not good with math).
Family Portrait 1994 |
I still remember him dancing around the living room in his
new karate pajamas, playing the slide trombone, and singing “Kiss the Girl”
with his friends. I remember him holding Alicia when she was born. I remember
him holding his firstborn child, then his second born child, and then, his
baby.
David, holding baby Lauren (Lilli looking at camera) |
I remember the night he showed me what an Irish Car Bomb was, and I remember
drinking it, and laughing my head off. I remember all the love, all the love.
All the love I don’t deserve and never could deserve.
My favorite recent pic--Grand Master Samarai Jedi Master Rodriguez (with his bride, Lennae) |
David, in every phase of your life, I remember you. I
remember you smart. I remember you funny. I remember you being so kind to
everyone—especially me. Because you are such a wonderful man, I am filled with
love for you. I refuse to remember that 2019-1979=40. BUT on October fourth,
your birthday, please remember that I love you!
David met us in L.A. at my December 2018 Residency |