A Year Ago

A year ago on February 27, 2023, I was sitting on the couch with my daughters, and I received a phone call from my mom that would change my life forever. “Dad is on the way to the hospital, he flat lined, but they were able to bring him back,” my mom said frantically.

I told her to keep me posted and about an hour later she called to tell me that he had died on the way to the hospital.

No matter how old or young you are, the passing of a parent is life altering. I was lucky to experience life with my father for 39 years, but nobody prepares you for the void that comes along with the loss of someone so significant to the story of your life.

It was always just the three of us, most of my life, Dad, Mom, and me, so missing one third of our family unit took some adjusting.

Missing his voice on my voicemails, missing seeing him sitting in his office, missing sitting outside in the backyard with him, missing hearing the girls yell Papa whenever they saw him, missing his bad dad jokes and most of missing his unconditional love.

There was no bigger fan in the world of my mom, my daughters and myself than my dad. No person who despite my many flaws and mistakes made me feel free of judgement. I miss him just always loving me no matter what and sharing our family with such pride on Facebook with little flyers he would make to share.

Today I think of you dad, after a year of you living in Heaven and I want you to know how much your love meant to my life, that you are missed and not a day has gone by this year that I haven’t thought about your absence from my life.

Thank you for helping bring me into this world and passing on your gifts of writing, humor, and unconditional love to me. I love you always and I will miss you everyday until I join you in Heaven.