I wanted to tell everyone what happened the day before and the day my dad passed. God had given me the greatest gift and I was privelaged enough to spend that last night with him.
My dad called and said he was on his way from Davenport and like before I had the living room blinds open because I loved to watch him come down the street on his motorcycle. Made me feel like a little girl waiting on her dad to come home.
When he pulled up I went outside and gave him a great big hug. He parked his bike, looked at me with that smile and said "Hey..I made it." He said that because everytime he came and left he detoured himself with some shortcut and it would end costing him time. We went inside and he went to his chair at the kitchen counter and I got him a bottled water. He then told me of his journey here and said he had taken another shortcut and it ended up costing about an half hour. We laughed, and David pulled up the computer so David could show him the route and explain the area to him. We then surfed the net for awhile and then I started to cook an italian sausage spagetti dinner. David left with girls to go to the store so me and my dad had some alone time.
We talked about Frankenmuth, and my family in Pa. I asked him what my grandmother looked like and if I looked like her. I never got to see a picture or meet her. He said I still looked like Marcy and like him. We also talked about my brother Lawrence. We talked about people in our lives and how things and people change. We stared alot at each other hugged and laughed and then I went back to cooking dinner. He read his email and he laughed because one of his friends sends him alot of jokes, I was looking at them and realized my dad saves every email he ever got. I asked him did he know what the delete button was, he just grinned. He seemed to always save everything.
His buddy Ron called and my dad was talking to him about getting into the internet at the mobile home park and everybody there had passwords on their accounts, I heard that and looked at him and said, "Dad, you try to hack the internet? He laughed and smiled at me and nodded his head a yes. He really wasn't, he just couldn't get hooked up fast enough. They laughed a little awhile and I don't remember to much of the rest of their conversation because I was too busy trying to recover the overcooked spagetti noodles.
After that Teresa called and my dad's eyes lit up. They always did when she called. He got this big grin on his face and he knew I knew what that look meant, so he walked outside for awhile to have some privacy on his conversation with her. He came back in and handed me the phone. I talked about my address because she was sending me one of his keyboards. My dad promised to teach me to play again. I was so excited. My David plays guitar, drums, trumpet and other instruments, and we all know my dad played everything, so I was trying to find my niche. We were planning on setting the living room up and jam.
Everyone came back from the store and the girls, Heather and Joch got their violins and chelo's out and my dad was playing them. He just amazed me with his talent with instruments. He didn't matter what it was, he would pick it up and start playing. He truly had that gift. He said, "Not bad after 20 years eh?
He then said, "When we gonna start painting this house?" The walls are primer white right now and I knew once he started painting the place was going to be beautiful. I could tell he wanted to do that for me and I wanted to help him. He already looked the place over the first visit. I wanted told him to relax until after the holidays because we just moved in here a few weeks ago and their are still boxes everywhere.
I served him dinner with everyone else, he ate good. He had salad, garlic bread, and spicy italian sausage with marina and those overcooked noodles. My dad ate them anyway and said they were good, while Heather belted out "Mom, what happened to the noodles?" He grinned, they melted in our mouth but he made me feel like they were the best noodles ever. What a great dad. We talked about Thanksgiving Dinner and he talked about Teresa stuffing with sausage. I asked him could I make anything special for him? He said no, he would eat it all. I wanted so bad to make something for him.
The girls brought out some paint colors for their bedrooms and dragged him into their rooms to discuss the crazy colors they wanted. He was a great sport and grinned at me while I cringed.
I got my photo album out and we looked at some pictures and he took one of me on his phone
from my photo album when I was a baby. I said, "Dad, the light is gonna mess it up." He took the picture anyway and their was a streak the it but he didn't care. He wanted to take more but I said, I would burn a disc for him so he could have all of them. He told me how I was the prettiest baby ever and how the girls would come up to him on the beach and tell him how pretty I was. I think I was being set up,, ha ha
I showed him some pictures from the Polka days and he laughed, he had curly hair. Kinda like a fro. He had his lederhosen on. We laughed and I started singing that song to him "I'm too sexy... for my lederhosen."
He was getting late and he was tired. He seemed a little off in the distance but I just thought he was tired. I tried to get him to stay the night, but he wouldn't. We all walked him out to his bike and I then I saw his riding glasses I had given to him. I asked him if I could clean them for him and he let me. I went inside and remember the sound of the bike, it wouldn't start the first time and then it did. I gave him some glass cleaner pads so he could keep them on his bike and he thanked me. He bear hugged me, then Heather and stopped at David. He grinned, laughed and then he hugged David. Hugging David was alot for me. That was his approval sign. I did it right this time. My heart jumped for joy inside after seeing that.
I made him promise me he would call me when he got home. He got on his bike, backed it up and waved goodbye. I watched him ride away down the street. I was like that kid again when your dad leaves. A lonleiness hit me.
My dad called me when he got home. Said he got lost again and ended up in downtown Tampa. We timed his arrival at an hour and forty five minutes. We then again laughed. I told him before long he would know this place like the back of his hand. He said he would call me in the morning and was going to bed.
The next morning came and we were doing this and that around the house here and my son called and we talked about his grandpa being here and how he never got to meet him. My son wanted too and and he asked me a million questions about my dad. I hung up with my son and started to doze off when my phone rang, it was sometime around twelve thirty or so. It was Teresa. She received a call from Ron and MaryJane saying my dad had hit his head and had gone to the hospitol. None of us knew where he was taken. Heather and I headed out on the road up I-4
toward Davenport. It would take me about and hour and a half to get there. I got a call from Theresa telling me where he was, so I was already on my way. I thought I would go and pick my dad up with a bump on his head and bring him back home and take care of him for awhile. No big deal.
As I was driving down the road and got closer to Davenport I started feeling panic. Thoughts raced thru my mind and I tried to push them out. Heather and I arrived at the small hospitol and we checked in. They said the nurse would be out soon, so we sat in the waiting room. The nurse came out and said follow me. We followed her to a cold white room and she said she would be right back. When she left, I thought why ain't I being taken back to see my dad? I started saying it out loud to Heather several times and kept repeating it because in my heart I knew why. The doctor started walking in and I wanted to shove him right back out that door because I didn't want to hear it. I just cold starred at him and the nurse, and really didn't like them people at that moment and I was thinking don't tell me what you come to tell me. I don't want to hear that. He told me about the call my dad made to 911 and said he was sorry, but he had passed. I didn't believe them. It was like a brick wall just came down on top of me. Heather started crying and my world started crumbling. They took me to see him because I didn't believe them...they had to have the wrong guy. My dad had a bump on his head.
I saw my dad, he looked so peaceful and he had this grin on his face, almost like he was glad to see me. I ran my fingers thru his hair telling him I was so sorry, and how come he was leaving me like this. I whispered to him "Wake up", and that I needed him so much. I told the doctor and the nurse how we had been reunited after 15 years and they said they had heard about that. My dad must have told the ambulance people. Wow, how special that is, he was thinking of me. They all knew the story. The other nurses and people around also knew the story and I could see the grief in their eyes. They all told me how sorry they were and walked me out.
I walked out into the lobby and had people starring at me. They all knew too. How could they not. I know I had that look of losing someone. Confusion was setting in and I had that daunting task of calling Teresa. I remember her voice on the phone, and I couldn't even breathe. How was I going to tell the lady my dad loved so much that he was gone? Why me? And his bestfriends? My daughter was crying, questions started flying at me and all I could remember was the night before, us sitting there talking and laughing. Thank God for Teresa. She stayed on the phone with me. I don't even know where she was but I knew the whole world just stopped for her too.
The ride back home was silent. The sun was setting and Heather and I held hands the whole way back home. I couldn't of went thru that alone. Not many words were said. I looked at the sky and realized that God knew and brought my dad to Florida for those final visits with me. How lucky was I. How much I wish things could of been differant. How I wish I could of done more, said more, just anything at this point..but the Lord is guiding me right now. I am so relying on him. I pray he gives me the strengh and wisdom I need to pull thru all this. I am so thankful for my uncle Tom. We had such a great conversation on the phone about my dad. He is setting up a memorial in Pa for my dad. I am also thankful to Teresa. What a beautiful woman of God, and how lucky my dad was to have her. She spoiled him rotten and gave him some of the best years of his life. I know this because he told me. His love for her was endless, like a teenager. I saw it when she would call.
I hope everyone gives everyone they love a call or a hug tonite and don't forget to tell them you love them. For you just never know when one is called home to be with God. He doesn't do it out of mean spirit, he needs them. We cannot always see the big picture. He can and I have to keep reminding myself of that.
I don't have many pictures of my dad or stories so all that leave a footprint here, please do so with much love. I get to see my dad thru your eyes and get to know the man he was beside my father.
Thank you and God bless..
Shelby