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- Joined Jan 5, 2001
I hesitated to post this because it's rather personal and I don't want anyone to think that it's distastful to be putting this online, but it's an important story and after much consideration, I thought I'd share it anyway.
It's about my father and I. Dad and I had a pretty rocky relationship ever since I was a teenager. We couldn't see eye to eye about anything. We disapproved of each other in every possible way. Somehow, as I entered adulthood, that didn't change much, except that distance allowed us to deal with the problem better. We spoke rarely, saw eachother maybe once every 2-3 years.
He entered retirement early and discovered he needed heart surgery. For several years he refused surgery and turned instead to a radical adjustment in his diet, and started studying the Bible. It became his new reason for living.
Last month, he was hospitalized and was in serious condition. When he recovered, he and I started mending the bridges. I guess we came to realise that all the other things which seemed so important to us for so many years and was at the source of our discord, really could not eliminate the fact that we had a deep love and respect for each other.
Last week, he started feeling ill again. Instead of going to the hospital he insisted to go out of town to see my sister and me. I was, I am embarassed to say, a bit ruffled by the lack of advanced notice, but I kept my mouth shut and planned a nice salt/fat-free luncheon for my parents. They came to my house for the first time ever. We talked. It was awkward at first. We opened a bottle of wine that I had carried around with me all over the world, waiting for that special occasion. It was nice. Our first normal family meal. Without exchanging the words, Dad and I had reconciled.
In the evening, my sister and her family came to pick up my parents to drive them back to her place for the night. Dad had a massive coronary in the car about 2 minutes after they left my place. He never recovered.
Mom says he was overjoyed. I hope it's true. I found my Dad that day, and then I lost him again. But I gained an angel, I'm sure of it.
This holiday season, please, go make peace with someone. It's really worth it...
It's about my father and I. Dad and I had a pretty rocky relationship ever since I was a teenager. We couldn't see eye to eye about anything. We disapproved of each other in every possible way. Somehow, as I entered adulthood, that didn't change much, except that distance allowed us to deal with the problem better. We spoke rarely, saw eachother maybe once every 2-3 years.
He entered retirement early and discovered he needed heart surgery. For several years he refused surgery and turned instead to a radical adjustment in his diet, and started studying the Bible. It became his new reason for living.
Last month, he was hospitalized and was in serious condition. When he recovered, he and I started mending the bridges. I guess we came to realise that all the other things which seemed so important to us for so many years and was at the source of our discord, really could not eliminate the fact that we had a deep love and respect for each other.
Last week, he started feeling ill again. Instead of going to the hospital he insisted to go out of town to see my sister and me. I was, I am embarassed to say, a bit ruffled by the lack of advanced notice, but I kept my mouth shut and planned a nice salt/fat-free luncheon for my parents. They came to my house for the first time ever. We talked. It was awkward at first. We opened a bottle of wine that I had carried around with me all over the world, waiting for that special occasion. It was nice. Our first normal family meal. Without exchanging the words, Dad and I had reconciled.
In the evening, my sister and her family came to pick up my parents to drive them back to her place for the night. Dad had a massive coronary in the car about 2 minutes after they left my place. He never recovered.
Mom says he was overjoyed. I hope it's true. I found my Dad that day, and then I lost him again. But I gained an angel, I'm sure of it.
This holiday season, please, go make peace with someone. It's really worth it...