It has been quite a while since I have posted. I have kept busy being a caretaker to my dad who was in the last stages of prostrate cancer. Terminal. Hospice. Morphine. Round-the-clock care. Funeral arrangements. Love. Family unity. Memories.
He passed away peacefully in his home on Saturday, March 8, 2014. It was a bittersweet moment to realize he is not on this earth for me to talk to anymore but relieved that he is no longer physically suffering.
We can never know what life has in store for us. There are twists and turns. Sometimes they are well received and sometimes we wish it could have been different. But the important thing is to keep on going...and by that it is to keep moving forward. Maybe we might need to take a few steps back as we stumble. But yes, the important thing is to head towards progress.
My dad was never rich in material things. He had sufficient for his needs. But he was a great leader who people looked up to. He was a humble man whose formal schooling in Mexico amounted to no more than a few months. Yet, he taught himself to read and write. And when he emigrated to the United States of America, he learned to speak, read and write in English as well. I remember as a young child sitting off to the side of a classroom as my parents attended free community English classes. I remember hearing them share to us their goal of coming to the U.S. so they could give their unborn children a better life than their own small border town in Mexico ever could.
My dad learned the trade of construction, in cement mostly. He was a genius in his trade. Rarely did he need to actually measure things. He could picture them in his mind and carry out the work. He was asked to be a foreman a few times but he declined. I don't know why.
He taught me a love for nature. He taught me to be brave.
He taught me that when things get tough, you get tougher until tough times end until the next time. And then the cycle begins all over again. But you keep on going!
I am truly grateful for his influence in my life. And now to keep on going..........
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