September 2, 2011, my family sat in a tiny exam room of a doctor's office and heard that my daddy had abnormalities in one lung. The chest scan report actually said that it looked like lung cancer. I did not know they could speculate on an official report like that. Stunned speechless...

A rough couple of weeks followed, filled with hurry up and wait. Hurry to get another test and wait a weekend for the results... This led to six weeks of radiation, a couple of weeks of homemade treatments suggested by a friend, one week of hospitalization, and too few days with my precious daddy.

Many days he would say, "If I lose as much strength from today to tomorrow as I did from yesterday to today, I will not be around much longer." We did not want to hear those words, but he knew the changes he was experiencing.

In his last days, he very wisely and lovingly prepared his family as best he could for our parting. He told his only adult grandson things he needed him to know. He told his oldest child, already widowed herself, that we were all going to have to part soon. He told all of us that the thief on the cross, as he faced death, looked to Jesus as his hope. He said that this was put in the Bible as an example for us to know that even in death, we have hope in Jesus.

We sang around his bed some but not nearly enough. Our time was too short. October 29, 2011, Daddy took his last breath and stepped into the divine presence of our loving Lord.

He has been gone over four months. We all miss him very much. His wife of over fifty years, his children and his grandchildren still cry at any given time, even at unexpected times. What I miss most is the pride and joy in his face that I saw when he saw me. It gave me a sense of value that I will never be able to explain.

Some people say that a girl links her daddy's qualities to God. That only works well if her daddy knows God and knows what a child needs to believe about Him. I learned unconditional love from my daddy (and mother too). My daddy made me feel safe, protected, loved, and treasured. It is easy to see God as all of these and more. I thank God for my daddy and mother. I miss Daddy, but I don't mind the tears too much. He is worth every one, and then some...

Blessings