Last night I dropped in to see my parents and while I was there my dad told me about a little Tim Tam biscuit he had been given, as was his wont. Being a fan of Tim Tam biscuits I asked if I could have one and he said sure and went away to get one. While he was out of the room Mum told me that there was only the one biscuit, which she had brought home from work for him. Not realising this was the situation I was upset that I had asked for the only biscuit my dad had to offer.
I called out to him saying I was happy to leave it for him and not to worry, but perhaps he was out of earshot, because he didn’t respond. Mum said to me that it really wasn’t a problem, and that “he would do anything for me”. I was deeply touched by this sentiment, despite feeling so bad that I left my dad without his Tim Tam biscuit.
The next minute, he returned to the room we were in, with a bite-size biscuit delicately placed on a tissue, serving both for presentation and function. I accepted this gesture of kindness, father to son, and proceeded to enjoy it. Really, it was wonderful. Dark chocolate with a little sliver of biscuit inside. I did remark to my father, who didn’t eat chocolates on principle, that there was in fact more chocolate than biscuit, so it probably broke his rule. We laughed.
In this brief interchange with my father, over a tiny chocolate biscuit, I felt a connection with him in a way I hadn’t in a long time. It was a special moment for me in our relationship.
Thank you Dad. You’re the best. 🙂