A Eulogy To My Father

There is not much that can be said or done to prepare you for the moment that the person who gave you life, the person who molded you and shaped your character, the person you always knew would love you unconditionally, takes their last breath.

The finality of it is so painfully unbearable because you know that you can never experience the parts of yourself that you once knew when you were with them, ever again.

All of the small and beautiful nuances about their character, all of the love, dreams, hopes and aspirations laid to rest with one final kiss goodbye.

My father was the only man I ever truly loved and he will forever hold that place in my heart. It is his place to keep for eternity and there’s not much I can say that could ever adequately express my gratitude for the unbelievably blessed life that he has afforded me with, through all of his hard work and dedication.

Honestly, I know people only ever like to remember the good at these kinds of occasions and that is fully what I intend to do but not without first mentioning that even if I tried, I couldn’t say a bad word about this beautiful soul that I am fortunate enough to call my father.

Was he perfect? No, but who is? He was perfect to me in his own unique and wonderful ways and he always did his very best to be fair and just to everyone in his life — friend or foe.

My dad was the definition of a good person. He was unbelievably kind, empathetic, fair, loyal, dedicated, and appreciative and always made the most of every day that he was given to him on this earth.

I have learnt so many invaluable lessons from my father, it’s tough to even know where to begin.

But through the many years of philosophical tails, he taught me to:

• Always ‘check my fence’ like the old farmer did.
• To catch my own fish and not rely on everyone else to feed me.
• To be fearless in taking leaps of faith.
• To never borrow money, but rather to give it freely, because it’s not worth ruining a friendship over.
• To always work hard for everything in life that is meaningful to me.
• To always have a clean car and never park it in the sun.
• To ALWAYS value my time.
• To NEVER get into debt and never let the banks own you.
• To value hard work and work hard for what you value.
• That your mind is your most powerful tool.
• And that — when times change, change with the times.

Things that he have inadvertently also taught me:

• To care more about people and meaningful relationships.
• Do not sweat the small stuff when you have such a short amount of time to be grateful for every last second you have on this beautiful earth.
• To practice patience and be brave enough to fight the tough obstacles in life with dignity.
• To never give up on your family and support them through every endeavor.
• You don’t need a fancy degree to be successful and you don’t need to come from money to make it.
• Humility in life is key and it is perfectly okay to be content with lots or little.
• And lastly, to allow your character to portray your reputation, not the other way around.

Mom, when I think of your relationship with dad — I see two people who were truly dedicated to one another in their own unique way. No family is perfect but watching both of you care for and never give up on one another is absolutely inspiring and a true testament to both of your characters. You are family and family is forever.

Dad, thank you for every moment we got to share with one another and for being such a truly great role model. Someone sent a message that described my dad as a gentle giant of a man with so much quiet courage, love and warmth and I couldn’t have said it any better myself.

I carry you with me wherever I go and my heart will always be your home.

I love you.