Saying Goodbye

Two weeks ago, I took an unexpected trip to Colorado Springs, Colorado with my brother and mom.  It was the weekend before Kylie started first grade and I still had several things to do in preparation for that, and  I had been working closely with several real estate clients, plus I was still healing from my hospitalization last month.  But five days earlier I received a phone call from my step-mom that my dad had very unexpectedly passed away.  It was a call that I never would have imagined receiving in my wildest dreams.  My dad took his life.  He was a God-fearing, Bible-believing, faith-preaching child of God that I know is sitting with Jesus now.  But he also struggled with some very serious mental and emotional issues that ultimately convinced him that he couldn't do life anymore.  I am thankful that he is finally at peace with the Lord and that his mind is now at rest, but so disappointed in his choice to ultimately give up and leave his problems to everyone else.

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't super close with my dad, but we maintained a cordial relationship and he was Kylie & Nathan's Grandpa.  It had been a while since we had seen he and my step-mom, but I had just spoken to him two weeks prior when we called him on his 60th birthday.  I knew he was going through a rough patch but had no idea the extent of what was going on in his life.  I wish he would have let those closest to him know "the real him" and that he would have gotten the help he needed, but that didn't happen.

So I got to spend a few days with my step-mom, my brother, my mom, and two of my dad's best friends at a beautiful hotel in Colorado Springs.  It was good to be there together and remember my dad, but it was also tough to see the hurt he left people with as they try to move on. 

I would ask for your prayers for my family and especially my step-mom as we all grieve and find closure in our own ways.  My step-mom has so much to do and is a strong woman, but she is exhausted and completely emotionally drained, as to be expected.  Please pray for my brother as he and his wife prepare to welcome their first child into the world in a matter of days.  Please pray for our family as this has given us a great opportunity for questions about Heaven and knowing Jesus and losing loved ones, but having this happen at the same time as school starting again was a lot for Kylie to take in. Thankfully we have so much family support here and I continue to thank God for that every day!

My dad, brother, and I many years ago.

I love you dad & will see you in Heaven.