Great Sage of the Sea
Posts: 590
Location: Colton, NY | Subject: From the email attic - something about Old Gringo
I was recently culling and reorganizing my e-mail files and came across this one.
Thought I better pass it along now before I forget it.
Sid
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Date: 6/19/2005 8:58 PM
jimmy@thekollective.com
Hi to you gents.
My name is James Thomas Parks. I am Tom Parks, a man more affectionately known around this
deck as Old Gringo's #1 Grandson. I was born in August of 1968.
36 years later I am a father of 3, married 13 years. My Father, Tom’s oldest son, lives 40 minutes
north of me in Ogden, Utah.
Growing older and wiser (hopefully) I think back to the old salty fellow who took me for trips with his
love Corrine out to the Mojave desert. A quiet man, he was often mistaken as being a grumpy
bastard.
I was always drawn to his strong character in my youth, and would often break uncomfortable
silences in the old pickup by saying,” Grandpa?" ........... "Grandpa?"........."GRANDPA?"
WHAT!!!! I'm listening!
You can imagine what an 8 year olds reaction would be to a response such as that. But in my mid
years now it makes me crack a smile. I remember when I was about 18 getting a heart felt letter from
Old Gringo about life’s lessons learned, and advice about how I may become a better man. It was
PAGES. I remember taking it for granted and putting it away in some old box.
Years went by, I grew apart from both my Father and Old Gringo. Tom's one time sweetheart
passed of Breast Cancer. He began spending a lot more time in what had been his home away from
home, Mexico, Tijuana, etc. then ever before. Later on Tom met his second love in Mexico City and
they married.
Eventually The Parks family had decided to have their first EVER family reunion out of the blue and
all of the Parks' came to San Diego to gather as a family of people who had been doing their own
thing, living their own lives and yet for these few days we shared each other together and I got to
sit with Old Gringo for several days in comfortable silence.
The pictures in our minds and our albums and on our walls we treasure of the time we spent
together as a family born of this Sailor and his bride. We left each other at the end happy and in
love with our name "Parks" like never before, not knowing that this last Tacate scented hug would
be the last great hug I was ever to have from the salty son of a gun. Remarkable.
Last year my Father Jim and I were conversing about old Tom and his laugh which we would miss a
whole lot more if it were not that our laughs themselves had a familiar ring to the original. My
Father asked if I would come upstairs with him to his study for a moment so I obliged. He wanted to
share with me how revered the Old Gringo was with pages of old sailor’s messages to my Father
about his. They all had the most amazing stories of this mystery fellow I knew as Grandpa Tom and
what a character he was and what a man was supposed to be.
He showed me Toms medals he had earned being a P boat sailor. He told me about his brother and
how he used to go AWOL when he was not given permission to leave just so he could see his
brother Jim. He told ma about the loss of Jim on his ship during WWII and how heart breaking it was
for Old Gringo.
Lastly he handed me a gift he said belonged to me. He reached into his old cigar box full of medals,
clippings, and other treasures and he pulled out something gold. It was a ring.
I had seen this ring on my Grandpa Tom several times and looked at it with curiosity often but had
never wanted to bother him by asking if I could hold it. Nor had I ever asked him about the
significance of the 1910 Indian Head $5 Gold coin which was mounted flush inside the signet
shaped bezel. And now, here it was being presented to me from Father to Son.
I have a son. He is my #1 son, only 12 1/2 years old.
His name is Thomas Ray Parks after his Great Grandpa who all of you call Old Gringo. On this
Fathers Day, I pay tribute to my Grandpa Tom, His son Jim Parks, and Toms Great Grandson who
shall receive the gold ring which belonged to the best God Damned sailor which ever lived....Tom
Parks.
Your #1 Grandson,
Jimmy Parks
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From the email attic - something about Old Gringo
