The Things We Keep

I have been cleaning out photos on my computer

as I have over 25,000 and I just know some are duplicated

and some I can't find when I need them.

This morning was one of those mornings.

When I came across a photo of a letter I could not remember

I had to look closer.

A letter from the Veteran's Administration addressed to my Dad.

As I begin to read I see it was written just a few weeks 

after my cancer diagnosis in 1968.

I would assume my Daddy wrote to the administration

to see if there was any help that could be offered

to him, a Veteran from WWII, and our family.

I was touched by just how personal the letter was.

Someone back then took the time to not just tell

my Daddy that there was really no help they could offer

but to address the fact that he had a sick child.

In today's World, where so much is auto generated 

and you can't speak to a person on the phone until 

you at least hear three recordings, this letter made me proud

for a few different reasons.

I wish I had the letter my Dad wrote to the VA

but back then making a copy of anything was hard

and probably not done.

I am proud that through my parents fear, Dad took the time

to write a letter to ask for help, something he rarely did,

ask for help.

The fear he and my family must  have been facing was 

not just about a sick child but the financial burden 

it probably put on them.

I am proud that after so many years the letter was

still in my Mom's things when she died.

I do not remember taking this photo or that I even had it.

I have no clue where it may be today,

but knowing me, I am sure it is one of the many scrapbooks

I have kept over my lifetime.

 This letter, for me, is like a love letter of sorts.

My Dad loved me and his family so much that

he bent and asked for help in the only way possible back then,

the written word.

There was no "go-fund" me accounts heard of much less St. Jude.

My Dad was not one to ask for help so this shows 

me a vulnerable side of him that was rarely seen.

So today, once again, I preach the need for the written word.

To be reminded that if
it is written, you can't deny it happened.

Thanks Dad for all you did not only for me, but the betterment

of our family.

I always knew you were great, just didn't realize you were also a 

SUPERHERO!