Congratulations on your high school graduation and thanks for the ride, Gabe. Thanks for the concerts, the All State, the tennis team, the State Championships, the plays, and your many assorted adventures.
I will remember with great affection, listening to the Red Sox on the radio at night, ping pong in the basement, one-on-one in the driveway, weight workouts, fried egg sandwiches, tennis
team trail mix, dress up Fridays, your “set-ups,” Rats, Holes, The Music Man, Oklahoma, Mr. McCarthy, taking tennis lessons with you, turkey bacon sandwiches, teriyaki bacon jalapeno cheeseburgers, Europa, jazz band solos, and lmprov with the old people in Warren.
I only wish I could have heard you do the morning announcements at school.
I will miss your humor, your antics and your stories. I will miss getting wrapped in your hugs. I’ll miss working by your side. I will miss the camaraderie. I will miss my friend.
You know who you are. Your old sax teacher wrote that in a letter about you years ago. That was a very insightful compliment and never more true than it is today.
You know how to play and you know how to work and you know how to balance them both. You know how to dream and you know how to produce. Your passion is your fuel. Safeguard your dreams and remember; the four years of college go by incredibly fast and you can only get out what you put into it.
I hope you meet some remarkable people and I hope you make some life-long friends. I hope you maintain a thirst for knowledge, you become inspired and get excited about what you are learning.
You already know that success takes hard work. Remember, success is not measured by how quickly you reach a goal or by how few mistakes you make along the way. Success is measured by how often you can pick yourself up after stumbling, and by your ability to appreciate the journey along the way.
Gabe, you know that I would do anything to help you follow your dream. You have earned that and you deserve it. Someday I hope you have a child just like yourself and then you will know why I say that.
Wherever you go and whatever the challenge, your family is with you at every step. Reach out when you need to, and remember, I’ll always be watching. I don’t want to miss a thing.
There he goes, my beautiful boy. I love you buddy. I’ve got to let you go now.
Love, Dad
