I was in grade school at da time, and I remembah it was my faddah who lovingly used to mek my home lunches wen I wen go on class field trips. I don't remembah whea we went go foah ouwa field trips, as much as I remembah the special home lunches he used to mek foa me. It was special all right, because nobody had the same kine of lunch like mine and nobody could mek 'em da way my faddah wen go mek 'em. The rice ball with vienna sausages on da side wuz my favorite. If I stay going on one long field trip den the rice ball lunch wit vienna sausage is wot I going get. Uddah wise, I going get tuna sandwich with pickles. I wen always look forward to eating my home lunch as dat was da bestest paht about my field trips.

He go pack my lunch in da kine' brown papah bag and wen write my name outsi real beeg wit da kine' marsh pen. I guess, he tot my lunch so ono that somebody going steal 'em. Insai da brown papah bag also get one can juice stay wrapped in tin foil. My faddah go freeze 'em da night befoa so be real cold wen I ready for drink 'em. By da time stay come foah eat our home lunches, my brown papah bag wen get all wet at da bottom from the extra cold juice dat stay thawing out. A coupla times the can wen cause one big hole on the bottom of the bag. I wen tell dis to my faddah and he wen get moa smart and wen wrap the outside of da tin foil wit plenty newspapahs. Dat way, the papah go absorb all da watah. I tink, das why I nevah like tek sandwich foah home lunch. Sometimes, the frozen juice go melt on my sandwich and the ting get all soggy that junk foah eat la'dat. He also stay put a few candies or uddah kine surprise snacks insai one napkin foah me and he go wrap 'em good with rubbah band. I nevah need toothpick yet in those days so nevah get toothpick wrapped in da napkin.

Nobody could mek rice balls da way my faddah wen go mek. He wen go usually give me just one rice ball, since it could pass for two and a half rice balls insai one. You should have seen how beeg da buggas were. The buggah wen look like one huge golf ball and da ting was so round. I wen take pride in eating my lunches, but I also wen feel shame when my classmates go ask me wot I get foah lunch. I no like them see how beeg and how round my rice ball stay. How I going explain dat you tink? They nevah tease me but I wen still feel shame because I da only one who had rounded kine My classmates one wen look like one triangle. I wen wonda why they name da ting rice balls wen all them guys ones was triangle. How you figgah dat?. One time I go ask my faddah if he can mek the rice balls look triangle. He wen look at me wit one confused face so, I wen go say 'das okay" to my faddah. I was thinking to myself, "das okay cause maybe my classmates going tell their faddahs or muddahs to go mek their rice balls round like mine stay. So nobody can see my ovah sized golf ball, I go keep the rice ball insi the waxed papah it was wrapped insi. While I wen go eat. I stay pull da waxed papah down anden tek one bite den one bite of the vienna sausage la'dat. Hit da spot, cause I know my lunch probably tasting moa ono than anybody else's. one.

Wen I came home from school, nevah miss, my faddah go ask me "How was the lunch"? Even when I got olda my faddah still wen go mek my lunch sometimes but I nevah tek rice balls. He was meking my lunches wit the kine leftovers from dinnertime. Now sometimes I miss not going on field trips because of my special lunches I would have. And I miss that, because nobody evah can mek home lunches da way my faddah could not even me. Most of all, I stay miss my faddah. I wish God nevah tek him away from me dis Easter. I no tink I ever wen tell my faddah in my adult years how special his home lunches were wen I was growing up.

Dee Lee was born, raised and lived on Oahu practically all of her lifetime. She grad from Aiea HS (early 70's) Her interests range from digital art and web design to eating out and going to the beach.

I love anything computer-related and built my own. As a non-traditional student, I recently and finally graduated from a community college this past May.