Gone, But NEVER Forgotten

In my previous blog, I alluded to my granddaughter’s birthday (she was 1 on July 8). My father, who ascended in January 2001), was also born in this month (he would have been 80 on the 23rd). Lord willing, my family, friends and I will gather together around that date to remember him and celebrate the life he lived.

Daddy’s physical presence may no longer be with us, but he’s ALWAYS near. Every time I think about him, I have good memories of times we shared late in both our lives. When I was a child, he and I often didn’t see eye-to-eye on many of life’s issues. When I married and became a father myself, he and I grew increasingly closer. Now that he’s gone, I often see with startling clarity what he meant by the things he used to say. I see and I understand.

Earlier this summer, I suffered what I felt like (and I thought was) a heart attack. During the uncertainty of the outcome of that incident, I tried to imagine my own ascension. I wondered if after I am gone, will my own children (who often didn’t see eye-to-eye with me on many of life’s issues) better understand who their father was and who I tried to be while I was with them. I hope so. And I hope that the memories of the times we’ve shared will make them feel as good as my memories of my father and I have made me feel.

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Daddy, you may be gone, but you will NEVER be forgotten. I’ll always love you and I’m looking forward to our first dance together in eternity (that is after God the Father, of course). The song above is for ALL fathers and their children.

Edwin Smith is Pastor of New Freedom Family Ministries in Oxford, Mississippi. He is a public relations specialist for The University of Mississippi.

Messenger’s Note: On Father’s Day, I paid tribute to our father, the late Eddie Lee Smith, Jr., with a poem I wrote called “Shoes.” Take a peek. – LES