From father to son
My Dad's in town to see his first grandchild. Now, if you knew my father, you would probably describe him as "funny, easygoing, tough and timid." And you would be right, but you would miss the fact that he has a very warm heart. So you need to know him pretty well to be able to interpret his gestures and looks. Well, I can and I can tell that he was mighty impressed with Hannes. He's a proud grandpa, simple as that.
He is also the member of my family who has paid most attention to which one of us Hannes looks like most. He looks for all possible Pakarinen traits and begins all his sentences, "You, too, were like that when.." My father is the official President of the Risto Hall of Fame, as he has kept mementos of every single big event in my life. He has kept a lock of hair from my very young head, the first fallen tooth, my first hockey jersey, the brace I had to wear on my leg when I was 5, my Phantom suit from the graduation party, a poncho my mother made out of a blanket she had got in the maternity package, a wooden boat I made on grade 5, all my drawings through grades 1-8, an Ilves hockey support scarf he gave me when I was 9 and he went away for a week on a coach training course and every single newspaper clipping I have ever appeared on. And so much more.
It's now my turn to open the Hannes Hall of Fame. First artifact: a cast molding of Jessica's belly, circa 2002.
