Hey, dad, “affection” is not a sissy word.
In these days of in-your-face bloviating and cheering the sucker-puncher, the idea of showing or expressing affection almost seems foreign. Oh, sure, we guys slap one another on the back or swat a buddy on his rear end, maybe we bear hug a pal with a grunt or exchange fist bumps but we don’t seem to be living in a time where tenderness and gentility are held in high esteem, let alone practiced.
In his book “Big Russ & Me,” NBC News Washington bureau chief and former moderator of “Meet the Press” Tim Russert paid homage to his father, Tim Russert Sr., or Big Russ.
He wrote, “Although Dad and I have always been close, our relationship has never been marked by open displays of affection.” That changed, however, when NBC created a series of programs that followed news anchors as they returned to the communities where they grew up to talk about the values and particular culture that shaped their lives.
Russert returned to his hometown of South Buffalo, N.Y., where he met some of his dad’s old buddies who never left the city. He visited the American Legion post where his dad has once served as commander.