Dear Dad

One of our last conversations was about your exercise plans. You talked about how you wanted to regain lost strength and be as strong and as lean as you were 25 years ago. I cautioned you to work out sensibly and honor your 50 year old body and it's limitations, rather than to expect your body to be capable of what it was 25 years ago. I think what your body was capable of in general is amazing. The amount of physical labor you endured and delighted in when possible was intense at the very least.

As a little girl, I loved walking behind you, always 5 feet or more to avoid the brush whiplash, because I loved watching your gait and listening to your soft footsteps. Now, as an adult, I know what you are, you are an earth shaman and woodsman. It's my explanation for the way you connected and communicated with the world around you. Everything you did with nature and your woodwork had a spritual essence to it, because it was spiritual. The wood spoke to you as you carved and shaped it to fit into your master design. The grass and trees spoke to you as you wound your way through them following a path only walked by deer. The lake spoke to you, easing your pain and fear, reconnecting you to your heart. And the earth yielded her treasures to you, delighting in your depth and appreciation of her gifts.

In the end, your physical body was ready to leave, and your spiritual body was ready for change. All is as it should be.