Moments.

Since it is my father's birthday today, I'm gonna share a little something...

A little something that I hope can make a difference.

2 years ago, I had this really bad fever. After I went home from school, I asked for some medicine, hoping that it will disappear after resting for minutes, but I thought wrong. That night, I went to sleep after papa put a wet, cold towel on my forehead to cool my head off, and for the first time in weeks, he didn't go out to drink. He stayed at home and watched over me.

I woke up the next day, hearing my father's voice saying that it's time for breakfast. I wasn't feeling any better because I still had a really high fever, but seeing that my father brought me breakfast in bed, it made me smile and the weakness that I had been feeling disappeared even for just a few minutes. After eating, papa put another towel on my forehead and asked if I was feeling any better. I shook my head because no matter how hard I tell myself that I am fine, my body won't cooperate. After a few minutes, due to feeling like a weak veggie, I dozed off to gain more energy.

I slept until late in the afternoon. My father made me soup and fed me. It was raining outside and that makes that moment even better. A hot soup on a cold day with your father. You don't get that moment very often. 

That memory never leaves my mind, and it's another reason why I never want to get a fever again. I want to preserve that moment when papa was there to take care of me and I don't want to change a thing.

...

A few months ago while I was eating at Greenwich, I saw a father holding his baby while waiting for the mother. I saw how the father would feed his child little by little and not make a mistake to make the baby cry. I saw how he would look at his child with love, care, and happiness and see his child as the most beautiful thing in the world, and at that moment, I wanted to tell the baby "Love your father and take care of him before it's too late. Never miss a chance to create happy memories with him because you'll never know when it's gonna be your last. And never forget that he loves you unconditionally, because I know every father is like that. No matter how much you have messed up, he will still love you deep inside because you're his child. No love can defeat a parent's love for their children."

Today, the 8th day of May, is my father's birthday...

Pa, I know I have failed you millions of times but you still loved me for who I am. Those 15 years that you have spent with me were the most remarkable. We had our ups and downs but your love for me and my sister never ceased. We will miss your singing and guitar playing, we will miss your cooking, we will miss your laughs, and we will most definitely miss you.

"It's not gonna be the same now that you are away,

 It's not gonna be the same now that your song won't play."

Tears have been shed and smiles curved into a frown,

Honestly, we never wanted you to go.

But you're with mama now and we want to say,

You're the best father we ever had, papa Cicero.

Happy Birthday, Pa! I hope you're having the best of times with mama up there.

~