Dad Would Have Loved It

I’m sitting here in the dining room at my twin sister Robyn’s house. Our family has just finished our early Thanksgiving meal and it was delicious as usual. The table has been cleared and the dishes are now being cleaned (hopefully they will not notice that I’m not in the kitchen helping with clean up...after all, I’m too stuffed to move at this point).

As I sit here I begin to reflect. I’m listening to the sounds and observing the actions of my and my sisters’ children (whose ages range from 4 to 17). Our children are playing hide-n-seek together upstairs. I hear my niece call out, “Where’s Jared?” Another voice hollers, “I’m hiding.” Occasionally I see one of my little ones coming down the steps with gummie bears in their hands. I hear lots of movement and there is giggling and laughter. After a while the voices begin to fade as all the cousins head for my sister’s bedroom (apparently my sis’s walk-in closet is a good hiding place). I also hear voices coming from the kitchen. It’s my mom and brother-in-law talking as they are cleaning the dishes (thankfully they have not noticed I’m missing in action). As I sit here I notice there are some voices missing from the mix. It seems a little quieter in the house. Oh yea, my wife and sisters went shopping...no wonder it is so quiet!

There is another voice that is noticeably missing from the mix though this voice has never been heard in my sister’s house. In fact, I have not heard this voice for a long time, but that is not to say that I would not recognize it were I to hear it again. You see, it is the voice of my dad that is missing. It was 25 years ago this week that my dad lost his battle with cancer. Dad was only 42 years old when he was diagnosed with colon cancer and he lived less than three months after his diagnosis. The last time I heard my dad’s voice was the day after Thanksgiving, 1983. It was the day after my twin sis and I turned 16. Little did I realize that I would never hear my dad’s voice again after that day, nor would I ever see him alive again on this earth. It was just three days after my sixteenth birthday that my dad went Home to be with his Lord and Savior.
Today, all I have are memories of my dad but I’m so thankful for the memories that I have of a wonderful dad who loved God, loved his wife and children, and who loved life to its fullest. I’m also thankful for the ability to remember! Yes, Dad would have loved hearing and seeing what I heard and saw this evening. He would have loved sitting at the table with his wife and children once again, and he certainly would have loved holding his grandchildren. To be quite honest, I would love to hear his voice again. To see his smile. To sit and talk with him. To introduce him to my beautiful wife and daughters. And how I’d love to feel that big hand on my shoulder once again.

This Thanksgiving week Dad would have loved to be with family creating more memories. But since that is not to be, our families will continue to add to the memories. We will take the time to cherish the moments before they fly away. And whatever we do I know dad would have loved it! So, if you’re reading this and still have your dad, take time to create some more memories...and if, like me, your dad has passed from this earth, take the time to create some memories, and know that your dad would have loved it.