My Father has been through a lot over the nearly past year, but his mind is still with us. It is the one thing that I admire about him getting through all that he has been through. It can seem like the world has been against him so many times. Regardless of the challenges, he kept going every time life challenged him. In return, it has taught me some resilience in living my life. Even though I too have challenges, they do not hold a candle to what he often experiences.

The last year and some change hasn’t been easy for us. We have had to live alongside his walk in life. We stuck it out because we felt that we had to. When someone has a brain injury like my father, there can be some pretty rough moments. He still experiences some of those moments, no matter how hard they are. It can seem unnatural that we endured for such a long time. It was particularly challenging near the time that he was about to be discharged. I am glad that my mother and I stuck it out.

I talked yesterday about how life can at times be unfair because of the challenges that we face. There is no one that knows that more than my father. He has been through what has seemed to be it all. But one thing I commend him for is never giving up, even there was moments when he wanted to. But we wouldn’t let him no matter how much he had wanted us to give in. In our family we just don’t do things like that. We love our family members through our challenges, I am living proof of that. That strength helped me during the hard days of going back and forth to the VA hospital. It also helped me understand that my mother is now a full-time caregiver. It taught me that I needed to untether myself from my mother more. I must be the independent person that I know I can be.

I admit it was hard to make sacrifices for my family. Still, I remember all the times you made sacrifices for me. The trips were joyful. Some were not because of my nonsense and the danger I often put myself in. I had not fully understood the consequences of what I was doing. We all have had to pay the price for those bad actions in one way or another. Your grace in difficult situations made me grateful. At times, it was hard for me to see, but I became grateful for recognizing those times. It made me realize that I had to return the favor by sacrificing my own life for your needs.

In the end, I know that I am blessed to have you as my father. Many situations in my life have been much worse. Your ability to see what I truly needed made a big difference, rather than what others would have recommended. You are the reason things are the way they are today. My life has partly become what it is because of you. Granted, there have been many times when I did not see things that way. Through all that you have experienced, I have learned to be thankful for the times I have experienced. I am grateful for the things you have done to make my life as successful as it is today.

Today, you have completed another trip around the sun. It can be hard to believe. But we keep pushing through no matter what. We know it is better than the choice the world brings us. You have proven that to me more than enough times in my life. You have shown me that life is always worth living, no matter what. Things can always be worked out one way or another.

I love you dad.