Life should be a bowl of ice cream

Originally published in March 2013

A public service announcement for my peers… Enjoy your parents. Spend time with them like it’s your last.

My dad is visiting this weekend and we’re not doing anything important. We watch basketball. Drink beer. Compare career notes. Turn society’s debates into math problems. Tour the city like tourists. Run errands. Sit in silence. And eat ice cream.

It’s wonderful.

The truth is, these visits are numbered. His mobility is decreasing and his mental acumen is dulling. Enough to make everyone quite sad if we stopped to focus on it. If we stopped to stress on any of the messy, strained bits of families that weave into the fabric of life, we would miss opportunities like this weekend.

But we don’t. And that is the secret sauce of the wonderful.

These moments have been unfortunately aided by tragic events. The loss of a sister and daughter and premature mortality that Parkinson’s brings changes your lens.

That’s the tragedy behind the tragedy. What if you didn’t need to have your lens prescribed?

That’s your challenge. Look passed the messy stuff. Scoop your dad ice cream. Sit back. And enjoy the simple part of life.