Sunday is the Muslim holiday of Eid which we celebrate at the end of Ramadan. This is the first time probably in my life that we have to spend it without my father there. Its the first for my mother in the past 28 or so years. I am not even sure how we are going to "celebrate" it but at least we will have some family, my father on the other hand will not. I know other inmates are like friends and family but he is only been there three weeks. I doubt if others even know there is a holiday.
Holidays always bring such joy but this time all i can feel is a dreadful feeling, like I do not want to go through it. I do not want to think of all the years that my father was with us and that we did not appriciate all that he did for us. Its so true when they say u don't know what you have until you lose it. We take our families, our loved ones for granted, until we can't have them with us anymore. I remember how my father would always complain to me and my brothers about how we don't spend enough time with him and we never understood what he meant, until now. If there is one thing I have gotten out from this whole experience is to appriciate my family, to appriciate them while i have them, to realized that they truely are my friends.
Anyways, how did some of you guys spend the first holiday without your loved one? How did you ignore the anxiety of what they might be going through that day? Knowing the world is going on just like it always was, but they are not there to experience it?
2 comments:
I am not sure how you celebrate your Holiday. For Thanksgiving we went to a family friends and did something completely out of the normal. So it was different for all of us. Christmas he had sent me gift tags from him to each of the kids and me. He told me what to buy and I put his tags on them.
Mike just called as he is just about back to the HWH. I asked him and he said that the guys celebrate together. Just remember, "you can mourn what you do not have or celebrate what you do". You can still talk with him on the phone or through email send letters and cards. If he was gone forever that would not be possible, and this is a temporary situation which you will get through. You guys are in my thoughts and prayers.
We haven't been through any major holidays, just 4th of July and Labor Day. We are just accepting that Thanksgiving & Christmas is going to be very different this year. We have the attitude that "it is what it is until it's over". I met your father, your brothers & your father's brother's on Saturday. Was nice to met them a put a face with your Dad & the brother that I had spoken with. Hope you are doing OK!
Leslie
Post a Comment