Then start by doing the simple thing. – Go. Be there. And don’t promise anything you can’t respect.
It worked.
He sent me a photo of Lily dressed in a flower suit, smiling on stage. Behind her, you could see a colorful decor, made of cardboard.
Under the photograph, my father wrote:
“This time I got there in time.”
I cried when I read the message.
Not because a single celebration could erase all missed celebrations. It’s because sometimes change starts with a small gesture, made at the right time.
Almost a year after the evening the ambulance had taken my dad, we organized a family dinner. It wasn’t my idea, it was Emily’s. He told me that Lily wanted to see his grandfather again and that we better try to spend a few hours together.
The mother agreed, although she was visibly excited. He prepared a simple meal with the right food for your father’s regime. There were no fried chicken, heavy sauces or exaggerated desserts. Dad joked that his doctor would have been proud of us.
