Later

So, I let Father's Day pass without comment, because when you're nearly fifty and don't have kiddos, and both you and your husbands fathers are deceased, there's not much to say.

But I stumbled across a Facebook memory from this day three years ago that was a tribute to Dad.  And it's such a fun photo, I thought I would share.





This was, as you can probably tell, from my wedding day.  Dad had just said something funny, and they caught me laughing.  And with my eyes closed.  That is pretty common in pictures of me.  It's fine.  I love this photo because you can tell we really like each other.

It's interesting - I still miss him.  I think of him often - but I'm at peace.  I don't know that I could have said that three years ago, and I don't know what has changed in that time.  Maybe just time itself.

My husband lost a friend this past week.  He had been sick, but we thought was going to beat it.  He wasn't a young man.  He was a very good man, and a lot of people will miss him.  Unrelated, I spoke with a former colleague earlier this week and asked about a mutual friend who had been sick.  I found out that he had died about six months ago - not long after the last time we spoke.  I knew he didn't have long, but I had hoped I would hear something at the time.  

My point is, death is part of life.  I know that's not an original statement, but it's appropriate to the conversation.

And as my father used to say, "Life is for the living".  I agree.  And I try to do that. 

To that end, yesterday was Juneteenth, and my company gives us the day off.  I took care of a doctor visit, then we went to eat thai food (Degthai, and it's awesome), went for a walk, and then I spent time with my dog in the yard.  She's pretty dang cute.  

For dinner, I worked with puff pastry for the first time and made a zucchini/ricotta tart.  It was spectacular.  10/10, will make it and versions of it for years to come.  It was pretty, and easy!  Plus, I got to use a lot of zucchini that I got last weekend at the farmers market.  So, win/win.  I may use the rest tonight and just cobble together a little squash kickasserole.  We'll see.

This weekend, I have a fair amount of  "me time" planned.  Don't have anything specific on the agenda, but it's going to be self-care, laundry, and list-making centered, and I couldn't be happier!

I hope you are living your life, too.

ae


Comments

Christopher said…
As sad as it is that at a certain point in life we start losing people it is a reminder to really enjoy what we have. In addition to yesterday being Juneteenth it was also our oldest dog's thirteenth birthday. He's still healthy and happy and I baked him a cake. He ate a piece then flipped the plate over to see if there was more underneath. That's a good way to approach life: enjoy what you have but also look for more.
I still need to try Degthai. It's a long way and we found a good Thai place close by--right across from Centennial Park--but Degthai is near my old neighborhood. It's been too long since I was there.