This picture fills me with a lot of emotions. First off, Campy is just over a year old. Look at the golden pup! Secondly, my dad - so positive and a lover of life - was only five years away from being diagnosed with stage 4 terminal cancer - which sadly ended his life 10 months later.
It makes me so happy that Campy is still here. At 15 years old, he is 76 in human years - which is what my dad would have been today. But I'm sad that my dad didn't get to experience life after the age of 67.
What would you do if you only had five years left to live? I often think about this. My dad was waiting for retirement to travel with my mom. He was just a year away from making that decision. While he loved his job as a VA optometrist, he also had a lot of other hobbies - running, working in the yard, fixing things, making things, listening to music, collecting stamps, taking pictures, and so much more. I wonder if my dad knew that he didn't have a lot of years left, if he would have done things differently.
Five years is an interesting length of time because it's still long enough to accomplish a lot but short enough that it feels like there is an urgent timeline.
When my dad passed away, I realized that I didn't want to wait to live life. Though I grieve every day and I miss my dad tremendously, he helped me recognize that I needed to change the way I do things and think about life. It made me realize what's important in life and to chase the things that bring me joy.
Happy Birthday dad. Thank you for teaching me to live for the present.
It makes me so happy that Campy is still here. At 15 years old, he is 76 in human years - which is what my dad would have been today. But I'm sad that my dad didn't get to experience life after the age of 67.
What would you do if you only had five years left to live? I often think about this. My dad was waiting for retirement to travel with my mom. He was just a year away from making that decision. While he loved his job as a VA optometrist, he also had a lot of other hobbies - running, working in the yard, fixing things, making things, listening to music, collecting stamps, taking pictures, and so much more. I wonder if my dad knew that he didn't have a lot of years left, if he would have done things differently.
Five years is an interesting length of time because it's still long enough to accomplish a lot but short enough that it feels like there is an urgent timeline.
When my dad passed away, I realized that I didn't want to wait to live life. Though I grieve every day and I miss my dad tremendously, he helped me recognize that I needed to change the way I do things and think about life. It made me realize what's important in life and to chase the things that bring me joy.
Happy Birthday dad. Thank you for teaching me to live for the present.