Getting The Last Word In

 

Although my family and I will always remember so much of what happened during the time between October and January, I don’t want the focus of our memories to be from when Dad was sick.  He was so full of energy, humor, and adventure.  He always felt lucky and had such a positive outlook, and even though we miss him so much, we should try to follow his example, even and maybe especially when the going gets tough. 

The last night before Dad came home, my sister Jennifer and I spent the night with him in his hospital room.  It was very late, and he told us he was tired and was ready to go to sleep.  He said, “Night, night,” and we both responded by telling him good night.   Then he said, “OK, good night” and we said good night.  This went on for several exchanges until finally I said goodnight and he said “Shhhh! Quit saying that!” and we figured out that he wanted to get the last word in. 

 

So to give Dad the last word since he can’t be here to comment, here are five things I know he would want to say:

*Always try your best to laugh, especially at yourself.

*Don’t waste time thinking too much about something or worrying when you can just do it – set a goal and give it your full effort, or, as Dad liked to say, “Hit it!”

*Find something that you love to do and share it with others.

*When you make a commitment, stick to it.

*Live life to the fullest – don’t wait to do the things that are on your Bucket List – spend as much time as you can with people you love and doing the things you love.


Thanks, Dad, for the late-night talks, the laughs, the lessons, the support, the love, and the perspective.