Missing you Dad
June 19, 2012
by Karthik Gurumurthy
Hey dad, been a while since I talked to you. We miss your mighty physical presence. It's been nearly four months since you went to be with the Lord and it's not getting any easier. In fact, with each day, the pain is pretty unbearable at times. The loss is equal to a thousand yard, gaping hole in the earth caused by an unexpected meteor. Well, last Sunday was Father's Day. It was the first without you and to be brutally honest, it was tough. I tried to put a nice face in front of mom and Shobana. I didn't want them to get depressed. Rather than hiding and bottling up my emotions, I try to let my fingers do the talking here. Last year, right around the same time I was awarded "Outstanding Teacher Award" from my workplace and more than myself, you were bragging and boasting all over the place. You have always done that. I always felt like million bucks when you did that.Thanks for always being there for us.
For people who are reading this, I got to tell you, it is a special relationship. I lost my dad to renal cell carcinoma (Kidney cancer) few months back. It seems like it was yesterday. And I miss him every single day. But even though he is gone, he is with me every day in the lessons he imparted to me as a loving, caring, concerned parent.I realize every day how lucky I was to have him in my life. How lucky I was that he was around and involved in my life and my development.
My father was a great guy. When Aravind and I were little, he used to come early from work and play Cricket with us. Even during the weekends we have played with him countless number of times. He was a sort of “Renaissance Man,” had friends from diversified fields, different age groups was well read and brilliant, knew a lot about everything, and was fiercely loyal to his family, friends and his workplace S.B.I. He taught us to believe in God, give your best and leave the rest to God.
He taught us to do the right thing and be honest to others. He always told the truth but might not have packaged it well. Most of his friends liked him for being candid and he would never gossip or talk behind their back. But the most important things he taught us were not through words. They were through actions. My father always acted with the utmost of integrity, loyalty, honesty, and charity.
And so I conclude my little treatise on my father — and the moral of all this for all those sons out there who still have their fathers with them: make every day with him count, listen to his advice, heed his admonition, weigh your words carefully and think twice before talking back, and above all, respect him for all that he epitomises. This way, you will never have any regrets when God does take him away from you eventually.Even if you don't share the same interests as your father, I hope that there are good memories throughout your life to know that his love means a lot and I hope that you're able to tell him that. In any case, if your father wasn't around. Show your mom some love today.If your dad is well and alive, give your father a hug today and tell him how much he’s meant to you in your life.
I love you, Dad.
