Ask a young boy who his hero is and 9 times out of 10 you’ll
get “my dad” for an answer. Our family moved to Long Island when I was in 2nd
grade and like many other boys my age, my Dad was my hero. However, I was lucky
enough to have 2 heroes. We also lived with my Grandfather and Grandmother so I
spent a lot of time with my Grandpa Nick as well. So much so, we created a
special bond which has lasted for eternity. He was a very unique individual,
marching to his own beat. For example, on Sunday he would volunteer to drive me
to church and religious instructions. On the way there, he would say, “you’re a
good boy right? Let’s go to the diner for pancakes instead of church, God will
forgive you!” While others may shake their head, I loved it. It was the little
things, like going to the movies to see the newest Peter Sellers’ Pink Panther
movie when it came out. I would love to hear him laugh; he had the best laugh. Going
to work with Dad and Grandpa Nick was the best. What fun. The guys would nail
my Grandpa’s work shoes to the floor so he couldn’t get dressed for work. He
would retaliate by blowing his nose into their work overalls so the sleeves stuck
together when they got dressed. You know fun stuff. (I see those heads shaking
again, get over it!) He also taught me how to bet horses. I remember when
Grandpa Nick got to work he would look at the newspaper and pick his horses. He
would take out some money, write down some names and fold everything up and
leave it in the desk drawer. He told me the guy who came in and picked it up was
going to the track that day and would place the bets for him. Yeah right! This
was my introduction to bookmakers. Sometimes, he would roll up a piece of paper
with money and tell me to bring it to the luncheonette on the corner and hand
it to the old lady sitting at the back table. I would walk up the street and as
I walked into the store, there would be an older, overweight woman sitting alone
at a table in a darkened corner. Thick cigarette smoke and the best R&B
music filled the air. It was a place you just wanted to hang out at for the day.
The people were like characters in a movie. It was so cool. I later figured out
she was running numbers. From there I learned from my Dad how to bet football
and what a point-spread was. Yeah, I wouldn’t trade that education for anything
in the world.
Getting
back to the horses, this is where it gets interesting. Like most kids, I
finally decided to ask my Dad what he did for a living. His response shocked
me. He said he and Grandpa were blacksmiths. Naturally, I laughed. How could
they be blacksmiths? I’ve never seen them make a horseshoe or even seen a horse
in the area. And then he showed me.
My Dad told me that my Grandpa taught him how to work with
iron and fire and shape metal and bend steel. One day, Grandpa Nick took a rag
and wrapped it around his arm. He took a piece of freshly shaped iron from a
leaf spring and placed it between two anvils. Down he came with a chop and
split the iron in half. I was shocked. Yeah, Grandpa looked powerful; a short
barrel-chested man with big arms and even bigger forearms but breaking steel?
He was now not just a hero but a Super Hero. He would heat the iron in the
forge, take it out and place it in a machine and then using his body as
leverage, bend the iron. It was remarkable. Then I watched my Dad do the same
thing and realized these men were amazing! People brought their cars to them
with broken springs and they would bend iron, make new ones and put them on
their cars.
As I grew
older, I still loved to go to work with them, even throughout my high school
years. They wanted to teach me to bend steel and twist iron but I couldn’t
afford to have my hands smashed with a hammer or burned in a forge. I was
playing guitar at this point and making my money in bands so my hands were
important to me. They used to laugh as I wore gloves to do everything and
washed my hands like a surgeon, twenty to thirty times a day when I worked in
the shop. I was glad I could keep them amused.
What’s
funny is that as I thought about writing this story, I did some research on
blacksmiths and it only added to their legend! It seems that history and
mythology shows a connection between blacksmiths, magic and the supernatural. According
to Sacred-Texts.com, Vulcan, the
Roman God of Fire, (Hephaestus of Greek mythology) is the patron of metal
workers and blacksmiths. According to tradition, the forges he used were
Earth’s volcanoes and in his Olympus workshop, he and his artisans created
Hercules shield, Neptune’s Trident, and Pluto’s Helmet. In addition, according
to legend, Thor’s hammer was forged by Dwarven blacksmiths. This is pretty cool
stuff. Even today, in Africa, blacksmiths are seen as priests or medicine-men,
and are considered chief personage in the community. Furthermore, in different
portions of Africa metal-workers as a class are seen as superior beings
(Sacred-Text.com). Since ancient times, blacksmiths have been linked to magic,
due to their power to make metal from barren rocks (lifepaths360.com). Legends and
lore regarding blacksmiths have made it all the way to modern times as
evidenced by those of us who use a horseshoe as a good luck charm for example.
Yes, it
seems that my assertions about Grandpa Nick and Dad were not far-fetched at
all. They truly will remain Super Heroes in my eyes, capable of great feats of
strength and magic. And yes, while all of this may be a bit tongue in cheek,
there is that basis of truth and the will to believe. I know for that 8 year
old boy watching his Grandpa Nick split that piece of iron in two, the feeling
of awe and amazement was very real and frankly still is. And go ahead; ask my
Dad what he thinks. I think he’ll agree with me. After all, I remember when my
Grandpa passed away; my Dad spent days crying like a baby. I believe it was not
only because he had lost the only real father he had ever known, but like me,
he had also lost his Super Hero too…….
I think about you every day and love you Grandpa Nick!!!
References
Blacksmiths
Credited With Supernatural Attributes (n.d.).
Retrieved June 26, 2014, from http://www.sacred-texts.com/etc/mhs/mhs10.htm
Peel,
J. (2008, March 3). Ancient Magic and Power of Blacksmith Charms. . Retrieved
June 26, 2014, from http://www.lifepaths360.com/index.php/ancient-magic-and-power-of-blacksmith-charms-16770/
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