I just raised a glass for him.

Sorry for your loss, as hollow as that sounds, but I'm everso pleased you and you family spent the day in laughter - it's how it should be. When my Dad finally went last year, we all congregated at Mother's when we could all get there, the house overflowing with grand-kids and great-grandkids, and we had a lovely bittersweet evening.

Barely a day goes by when I don't think of him. So he's still around, really. In fact, it was only last weekend, when talking to Mother about some petty squabble or other in the extended family that I said something that so would have been what Dad would have said, and I noticed, and paused, and saw that Mother noticed too, and I said "he's still around really, isn't he?"

So if your Dad has left a bit of him in you, like mine has in me, he'll never be gone, not really.

Posted By: Arizona Bay, Jul 14, 19:11:12