In 2006, I was a June bride (I know, so cliché). I always wanted to get married in the month of September but the venue my husband and I fell in love with was only available during summer months. My wedding day was bittersweet. One month before, my father had been diagnosed with Stage Four Glioblastoma multiforme (brain cancer) and underwent aggressive surgery and treatment immediately for his two quickly growing tumors. I considered postponing the wedding but he insisted we go on as planned. The ceremony was about 10 minutes long and full of laughs but you couldn't escape the bright pink scar on my father's shaved head. He and I shared some tears right before we walked down the aisle but the rest of the day was joyous - the celebration we all needed.
My father, telling me a joke as we walked down the aisle.
While my father was given just four months to live after diagnosis, he lasted for two and a half years - a testament to his strength, courage and determination. When I became pregnant in 2007, we shared more tears, knowing that he'd never really know my son. My boy Brighton was born almost exactly two years later in June of 2008 in Boston (his due date was my wedding anniversary but he decided to wait another week - that's a different story). Since my father lived in Indiana and was not cleared to travel, he had not yet met my baby when I got the call he was in his final days in late August. My husband, baby and I hopped a flight to Indiana and finally introduced Brighton to his grandfather - another incredible, dramatic, bittersweet moment I will never forget.
The exact moment my father met my son in August 2008.
While my father passed away on September 13th, 2008, the month of June is when I think of him the most. Instead of recent, kick ass purchases, my June List includes trying to live in the moment, appreciating what I have, not what I don't and making sure the people I love the most feel that love every single day.
Keep it funky.
JDF