Lessons from My Father #1

      Being up in the air, flying, often provides me with the time and space to reflect and recover. Right now, I can't help thinking about my father and all of the sacrifices he made to raise me as a single parent. It had to be extremely difficult. As a 21 year-old woman without kids, I struggle to take care of myself at times. So I can only imagine the road blocks encountered as a middle-aged black man raising two little girls.

      I don't think I hate my mother, but at times like this, I feel insanely close. How could she leave my daddy as a single parent, and leave me and my sisters to fend for ourselves in the mysterious and confusing realm of womanhood?? Ugh, fuck her. Despite it all, my daddy made his situation work for him and it is from watching him succeed in his endeavors that I draw my strength for life.

      Things don't always go as planned, and they're constantly falling apart for me, but because my daddy pushed through, shouldn't I be able to? Aren't I my father's child? In my twenty-one years that I've had with my wonderful father, I've learned one major lesson that I feel hard pressed to share with the world. When my daddy passes (huge touchy subject), the thing that will remain at the forefront of my mind (besides my love for him) is this:

       Life is one tough cookie, and its always going to crumble. But that doesn't mean I have to crumble with it. It's all a series of of breakdowns and reconstructions so when your pieces fall apart, take some time to reflect, recover, and then get down to the task of reconstructing it all into something better. Besides, its YOUR life. Grab that shit by the horns and enjoy what is sure to be a long, bumpy, and VERY eventful ride.



"just when the caterpillar thought life was over, it became a butterfly."

XoXo,
T