Fickle

Colin,

Daddy has been having very bad flashbacks and nightmares. He remembers every moment of that night in greater detail than anyone ever should. Today, Daddy saw the police officer who would not leave your sister's room that horrible night. He was in his patrol car at a red light. The visual brought back so many things from that night and the time Daddy saw him at church, the time Daddy saw him again at the grocery store, and the time Daddy saw him at the lake. Every time, seeing this man triggers raw emotion and terror that Daddy has sadly gotten used to, but still shakes when the images flash through his brain. This is all probably the brain's way of gearing him up for Friday, but Daddy needs no precursor telling him what the day means. It is what it is...a marker in time, but it is so much more. It is the day Daddy realized the depths of sorrow and the heights of love. It was/is a terrible lesson, but to understand true unadulterated love, sometimes you need to understand true loss and sorrow. Daddy would not wish this lesson on anyone, but hopes his lessons serve as a warning shot to anyone who takes love and time for granted. Both are fickle, and both are unrelenting.

I love you!
Daddy