Honoring my dad on Veterans Day.

Today I am honoring the most important man in my life - my dad who was a Vietnam Veteran.  Although my dad is no longer physically with us I think of him and speak to him daily.  I feel his presence surrounding and protecting me.   He past away 6 1/2 years ago from Multiple Myeloma, which was likely developed from his exposure to Agent Orange.  My dad was super hilarious and could make light of any situation.  He was a simple man who was very much set in his ways - many of those ways learned in the military.  He grew up without a father most of his life so when he became a father he had to navigate these new waters through experience rather than by example.  He made his mistakes as a father and I made my mistakes as a daughter, but we were both able to learn from these mistakes and support each other the best way we knew how.  I learned several valuable lessons from my dad but there is one lesson that stands out the most.  I now know that aman's past cannot define his future and that there is always the possibility of change and eventually redemption.  I will continue to say that I am no where near perfect and will take ownership for each of the mistakes I make along my own journey.  He made be a better human being and my only regret is that I was not able to communicate this to him while he was alive, however, I am able to communicate this message for him to my readers and to every human I have the great fortune of coming into contact with.

On this Veterans Day I honor my dad and his service to the United States and most importantly
his service to his family.

Ivy