PAPAULI
I cannot help but smile when I hear his name
or come across a photo…
He was my hero, my special person
He was the one who always had a smile,
a hug, and a lap to snuggle on.
I can still smell his pipe
and feel the softness of his cardigan..
and see the diamond pattern on the front.
He was very tall, and had strong shoulders
that gave me a favourite place to ride.
“I’m nearly up to the stars, Papauli..”
“You are, mikroúli mou.. nearly there!”
He taught me how to drain honey from the combs
and to always wear gloves “just in case”.
He didn’t think it was at all strange
when I named all the chooks ..
and it was he who quietened my grandmother
when she was about to tell me
which of my feathered friends was in the oven.
I was his shadow.. wherever he was, so was I.
He helped us pick fruit and flowers ..
so long as they weren’t our grandmother’s special ones…
No one in need ever went away empty-handed
and there were always a few logs to chop
for those who needed a meal but wanted to ‘earn’ it.
His kindness and generosity was valued by all
as was shown by the enormous procession
(that I at first thought was a parade)
that wound it’s way through the town and out to the cemetery.
I was just five years old,
with a heart that never completely healed.
Crissouli Aug 2022
‘Papauli’ is grandfather, ‘mikroúli mou’ is ‘little one’ in Greek.
RIP Theodore Haralambos Catsoulis
21 Jun 1878 - 19 May 1953
A true gentleman…much loved and still missed.
