Years ago, I worked in a Scandinavian store in the good ol' Mall of America and made some wonderful friends in the four years I was there. I worked with Hilary fairly briefly but enough to get to know her. I ran into her a few years ago and caught up briefly with her. I got an email a few weeks back saying that her Mom passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. Hilary's Dad found her Mom on the floor when he went to check on her because she was napping for longer than usual. They think the cause was a massive heart attack.

And it all comes flooding back... losing my Dad in the same way almost two years ago. It's amazing how quickly the ache in my gut can come back and the memories of finding him on the driveway and all that came after that. I miss him so very badly. I wish he could have met Owen. It's just not fair.

I'm working on a memory book with photos and memories of my Dad because I feel like the memories are less vivid than they used to be. But, the process is so heartbreaking. I thought I had done a lot of healing but it's amazing how fresh my wound feels when I allow myself to open back up to the heartache.

I miss you Dad and I long for the way things were when you were here.