Ever-Present Grief

WILL GRIEF EVER STOP INTRUDING ON OUR MILESTONES AND CELEBRATIONS?

My daughter Joy turned twenty-three a few weeks ago. It’s surreal that I have an adult child. I will be fifty in a few months and I still feel like I’m in my thirties. We’re currently in different countries so I didn’t celebrate in person with her. I made her a cute birthday reel though. She had the best response: “🫣🫣 Daaaad. Love you too.”

I can’t state enough how in awe I am of this child… I mean young woman. And yes, I let her know. Since losing her mother at fourteen, she has embodied resilience at times far better than I. We don’t talk about Jennifer (my late wife, her late mother) a lot these days. I don’t know that we need to. She’s the unspoken presence in every conversation we have, and her absence is glaring whenever Joy hits notable life milestones.