February 28, 1994

Another anniversary is here. It was fourteen years ago today that dad died. It doesn't seem that long, even though so much has happened in the world since then. Thinking about him brings back the pain I felt fourteen years ago. So many things I should have told him, so many things I wanted to tell him, the time that I planned to spend with him but never got around to it... I should have made the time back then.

When your family is gathered together in a funeral home for calling hours it's hard to put aside your grief for any other emotion. At the calling hours for dad, with all my brothers and sisters and relatives sniffling and crying as we comforted each, an organist played music in the background. At one point when I was talking to my sister the theme from "The Godfather" rang out from the organ. Apparently he thought from all the Italian sounding names there, that we were Sicilian mobsters or something. My sister and I looked at each other and started laughing. The organist had unintentionally added humor to the somber affair, giving us a much needed emotional relief. Dad would have had a good laugh too.