Celebrate Life!

When a child is born, we celebrate!  It's one of life's most precious gifts.  And each new child is given a life to lead on this Earth.  But what happens when someone dies?  We have a hard time celebrating because of our own pain, our own mourning, our own feelings.  We miss the one we lost.  It hurts when someone we love is no longer in our lives.

The truth is, we should celebrate the time we had with a person, no matter the length of time we had with them.  Today was that kind of day.  It was sad to say goodbye to Dad, but the memorial service we planned was a celebration of his life!  My sister knows how to plan great parties, and this one was the greatest of all!  We had a worship service, sang the hymns Dad had requested, the choir sang the song Dad liked so well - they even wore their choir robes because that's what he wanted! - and my sister spoke, giving a loving tribute to him.  I was so proud! because she has the ability to speak in front of a crowd.  Me?  I always say "My Dad was a man of few words -- and I'm just like him!!!!"

We showed slides of Dad throughout his life that I made for him on the last Father's Day.  Some of them were funny enough to make the entire crowd laugh out loud!  And I was so pleased about that - people needed to be able to put a visual to all the facets of the man my father was.

After, there was a reception of finger foods, and we had put up special photos of Dad everywhere, and showed even more slides from his life.  So many people came to honor him - some were people who didn't know him, but who know his children.  How a man raises his children says a lot about the man he was.  Of course, after that, everyone headed back to the house - the house my parents have lived in for 49 years! and we continued the party, the stories, the celebration.


I'm proud to say I'm his daughter.
and I know that he was proud of me.

Celebrate Life!
We sure did today !!

You are missed, Dad!  love you :)