This is my father, in pictures he sent my mom during his tour in Vietnam, who passed away in 1997, just few days after he turned 50. He survived his time in the military with a Purple Heart and a case of PTSD, was as gentle a soul as there was, loved nature, animals and his children. Alcoholism estranged him from his kids near the end of his life, and though there was a lot of unresolved hurt in the void of his loss, my sisters and I have reached peace with it all. And I will always treasure the fact that the last thing he ever said to my face was "I love you."
