The power of family (and love)

General Blog
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So, some of you realized that my Dad joined this network the other day. It just reinforces to me how important we all can value whatever we may call family. The day I had the AVM bleed, he dropped everything and drove 300 miles to see me in the hospital. He was an amazing support to my partner- especially since I was so comatose that I don’t even remember him being there! I can remember when I was a teenager how little I thought I had in common with my Dad. Now I can’t imagine life without him.

So, he’s seen the good, bad and ugly side of me- now let me tell you how he raised me. Because of him I respect all others regardless of where they came from, the life they live, their points of view, etc. Mind you, he never actually sat me down and told me how to do this, he did it by example and its a powerful one I’ll never forget.

I remember the days and days of fishing; when he let me use his condo on my 18th birthday (don’t ask me about that Dad); how he listened with wise eyes when I was heartborken for the first time and how we treats my partner like his son everyday.

He’s a good guy!

(Enough sucking up, eh?)

I think we should encourage more of our family to join this site. The “event” of a bleed or diagnosis is just the first step in a life changing experience. Our families need to know how it affects us daily and how brave many of us are (and how scared). Its simple, use the Invite option, send them an email.

Have a great weekend.

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Hi Brian
Great story, i’m a total Daddy’s girl even though I don’t see him a lot. I don’t talk about the avm to my family and thay never mention it to me bti weird i suppose but there it is. I didn’t even bother to mention i was going in for angiogram on Mon only my friend Angela knew as she was babysittin my son, I’m probably a bit to deep for my own good eh?

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Brian now you’ve done it-I am an orphan as both my parents went and died-and now I shall probably have to borrow yours on occasion. Do you rent him out? We shall have to make a deal. Know what I liked most and miss most about my father?? Not the late night John Wayne and beef sandwich nights or the Ali/frasier/etc. fights or even the fact that the poor sod ate whatever we prepared for him; I miss the way the man would sit at table with his five daughters and one son and wife and listen to all of the malarky while drinking his tea. and then as he sipped the last of it and set the cup atop the table he would place one hand and then the other down as he raised himself up from his chair and while looking at each of us he would calmly say,“Aye, you’re all nuts.” God knows that poor man never made it out of the room before I laughed out loud. Probably part of why he left, six children and thirteen grand-children later and I never once allowed him his exit line…