In the 1988 movie “Twins” starring Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger, twin brothers, Julius and Vincent search for their long lost mother. The twins were a by product of an experiment to produce the perfect child (Schwarzenegger). Arnold got the looks, the body, and brains, while Danny got everything leftover. The tagline for the movie was “only their mother can tell them apart.”
My father and his twin brother Dwight were far from perfect children. Grandma Vesta told all of her grandchildren numerous stories of the antics of her twin boys. Jack and Janet, their younger siblings, contributed to those stories as well. I am sure dad has captured many in writing maybe even some the kids have never heard.
But this blog is not about all of those stories. Today I want to recall one specific story that my dad may not remember, and my cousins may never have heard.
Some studies indicate an uncanny closeness between identical twins. Dad and Uncle Dwight were identical in many many ways. These studies document eerie closeness in twins separated from birth and raised by different parents miles apart. The twins have similar interests; do about the same in school, etc.
At one point in their youth, besides Dad wearing glasses, the only distinctive difference most people could discern was the variation in their voices. Now that is identical!
Dad and Dwight were not raised apart by different parents miles apart. But later in life they did live a few thousand miles apart. Dad lived in Seattle and Dwight lived in Kitchener Ontario.
One summer Dwight and Myrna stop by for a few days on their way to Alaska. They arrived late one afternoon. It might have been a Friday, but dad was at work. He came home, wearing his suit, and went through his normal routine (reference “Wait Until Your Father Gets Home,” 8-10-07). Dwight, Myrna and Dad engaged in small talk “how was your drive?” while my father emptied his suit pockets of keys, change, wallet, glasses, pens, his Boeing badge etc. Mom was in the kitchen starting on dinner.
Dad said “why don’t you fix yourself a drink and read the newspaper while I change my clothes.” Uncle Dwight had some come back like “I’ll wait on the drink since I am a guest,” or some such. Myrna joined my mother asking what she could do to help.
Dwight grabbed the paper, picked up the glasses on the fireplace and waited for his drink. A few minutes later my father came out, asking what Uncle Dwight wanted to drink. After a few minutes in the kitchen dad brought out the drinks. He went to the fireplace mantel to retrieve his glasses so he could read the newspaper with Dwight. But his glasses were not there.
“Dwight, you have my glasses. I need them to read.”
“These are my glasses.”
“No. I just got them 3 weeks ago. Those are my glasses.”
“These are my glasses. I just got them a few weeks ago. I know my glasses.”
“I just set them on the fireplace mantel when I came home from work.”
“If these are not my glasses, where are mine? These look exactly like mine.”
“Dwight, yours are in the bedroom” Myrna said from the kitchen.
I don’t recall whether the glasses were “exactly the same,” but for all intents and purposes they were. They both had bought new glasses, the same prescription, same frames (or very nearly), had eye exams – three weeks earlier, 2500 miles apart.
Creepy!
- Craig
My father and his twin brother Dwight were far from perfect children. Grandma Vesta told all of her grandchildren numerous stories of the antics of her twin boys. Jack and Janet, their younger siblings, contributed to those stories as well. I am sure dad has captured many in writing maybe even some the kids have never heard.
But this blog is not about all of those stories. Today I want to recall one specific story that my dad may not remember, and my cousins may never have heard.
Some studies indicate an uncanny closeness between identical twins. Dad and Uncle Dwight were identical in many many ways. These studies document eerie closeness in twins separated from birth and raised by different parents miles apart. The twins have similar interests; do about the same in school, etc.
At one point in their youth, besides Dad wearing glasses, the only distinctive difference most people could discern was the variation in their voices. Now that is identical!
Dad and Dwight were not raised apart by different parents miles apart. But later in life they did live a few thousand miles apart. Dad lived in Seattle and Dwight lived in Kitchener Ontario.
One summer Dwight and Myrna stop by for a few days on their way to Alaska. They arrived late one afternoon. It might have been a Friday, but dad was at work. He came home, wearing his suit, and went through his normal routine (reference “Wait Until Your Father Gets Home,” 8-10-07). Dwight, Myrna and Dad engaged in small talk “how was your drive?” while my father emptied his suit pockets of keys, change, wallet, glasses, pens, his Boeing badge etc. Mom was in the kitchen starting on dinner.
Dad said “why don’t you fix yourself a drink and read the newspaper while I change my clothes.” Uncle Dwight had some come back like “I’ll wait on the drink since I am a guest,” or some such. Myrna joined my mother asking what she could do to help.
Dwight grabbed the paper, picked up the glasses on the fireplace and waited for his drink. A few minutes later my father came out, asking what Uncle Dwight wanted to drink. After a few minutes in the kitchen dad brought out the drinks. He went to the fireplace mantel to retrieve his glasses so he could read the newspaper with Dwight. But his glasses were not there.
“Dwight, you have my glasses. I need them to read.”
“These are my glasses.”
“No. I just got them 3 weeks ago. Those are my glasses.”
“These are my glasses. I just got them a few weeks ago. I know my glasses.”
“I just set them on the fireplace mantel when I came home from work.”
“If these are not my glasses, where are mine? These look exactly like mine.”
“Dwight, yours are in the bedroom” Myrna said from the kitchen.
I don’t recall whether the glasses were “exactly the same,” but for all intents and purposes they were. They both had bought new glasses, the same prescription, same frames (or very nearly), had eye exams – three weeks earlier, 2500 miles apart.
Creepy!
- Craig
1 comment:
You dad was the master of ceremonies at our wedding, and the one thing that I remember was his distinctive voice patterns. Shortly after our marriage Bob was going to the University of Montana. Your uncle Dwight, a professor there, and your Aunt Myrna had us over for dinner. When we walked into the room and were greeted, I felt that I was in presence of your Dad. I could never tell them apart, and they each held the same charm, and warmth. Yes.......both wonderful.
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