As I sit here tonight, or I guess this morning since it is 1:31 a.m. on the morning of Father's day 2011, my mind cannot help but wander back eleven years ago to this very weekend.... I thought at 19 years old that it was going to be just another Father's Day, just like all the others... I was so wrong.. My sister and I drove up to Wichita Falls together, shared some laughs because we had no clothes "suitable" and stopped at Ross to get something - I'll never forget that day and the days to follow. It was a shocking, sad time for my family; and all of us wondered if we would ever get past the events that followed. Not to mention the tasks that followed the death of not only our father, but of our Pastor. We felt like we had to not only hold ourselves together, but a church together also - it was a very hard time for us all. Fast forward eleven years...and here we are! Since then we have added 6 children to the family, continued educations, built careers, built families of our own; we have lived, we have loved, we have lost some and gained much. Most of all, we have stayed together as a family and grown closer each year. We have learned more about grace, acceptance, forgiveness, kindness and endurance - all of the things that dad desired for us to learn and live.
As I gaze at the sky tonight (or this morning), it's mostly clear with a little clouds scattered here and there... I cannot help but wonder (and hope) if he can see us and all that we have become. I do believe that he would beam bright enough for us all to see him if he could get a glimpse of his grandkids, his only son, and my sister and I now. I looked at the picture you see here of us and our mother and I see so much that he would be proud of! He would absolutely adore Ryan's fiance - she's a lady he would have hand-picked for Ryan - maybe he did ;) who knows what you can do up there... He already knew Brook and how amazing he was, but I believe he would love him more now, watching the kind of dedicated father he is to his grandkids... He briefly met Jimi, but he did not get the chance to see just how wonderful he was, what a perfect gentleman he is to me and his grand-daughter... He would be so proud that Ryan has carried on the musician gene, and how Jordan is following Ryans lead... His legacy is seen in all of us, literally on a daily basis. When I watch Ryan mingle and talk with the people around him, it's like watching dad. When I hear stories and read emails about how in just one year of teaching, Carmen has changed lives with her kindness, compassion and passion for youth who need an extra push or challenge; I see dad in everything we do. I see him in myself when I cannot walk away from a parent-less child, or a needy child; when their eyes haunt me and will not let me lose my dream and vision for mine and Jimi's orphanage - someday.
Eleven years later, his love is still beaming through us, his passion is still pressing us forward and his legacy will live on through us and our children. He taught us to "live, laugh & love" with all our hearts. "I hope you dance" would most likely be his theme song to us all. This Father's Day, I am so thankful for the family ties that I have with my brother and sister and our beautiful mother. Nothing can change it, nothing can shake it, and no one can lessen it - everything has been tried, it is just not going to happen. He left us with the most vital thing in life: LOVE, COMPASSION and PASSION. Thanks dad! ;)
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