John H

This is my father. I am sure that all children think that their father is their hero but mine is extraordinary. When I was two years old, in 1963, my mother died of bone cancer. She left my father not only heartbroken but the father of five children. My extended family rallied together and made the decision that the children would live with various family members because my father was a traveling salesman—my father was grieving so deeply at the time he was not aware of their decision.

After the funeral, my siblings and I were getting ready to leave with our extended family members to go with them to their homes in other states. When my father realized what was happening, he put his foot down and said that his five children were not going anywhere. He was our father and that was where we would stay: with him. And we did.

Times were so hard for him. Two of his children were not even in school yet and the other three were pre-teens trying to fit in with friends at school, much less learning how to deal with the loss of their mother. My father was dealing with hospital bills and a mother-in-law that blamed him for the death of her only child. My mother was given a "new" cancer drug, chemotherapy. The doctor was trying anything to save my mother and at the time my father was desperate to not lose her. Times were not easy for my dad.

I do not remember the hard times though. Not only was I small but my father never let us know how bad the times were. I do not ever remember a time when my father did not provide for us. He eventually got a housekeeper that stayed with us so that he could go back to work. Every night he came home and took care of the five of us. He loved us unconditionally. When I hear these stories, not from my dad but other family members, I am so proud of my father. He could have given us to other family members and made his life easier. But he did not. He stood up for his family. I am what I am today, a mother of three beautiful sons, a very successful sales manager for a Fortune 500 company but more important than anything...I am my father's daughter.

Submitted by Anonymous

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